Love of All Kinds
by Lass Luna
Summary: Once upon a Time there was history before our Savior appeared in the Land without Magic, tales were told, secrets kept, (but not very well), all leading up to the 'final battle'. But this is not that time, nor that place, this is a time where The Dark Swan and our favorite Deckhand are off on fantastic adventures, what goes on to the others whose lives are changed as a result?
1. The Boy and the Deckhand

Hi, if you've just stumbled upon this story, I suggest that you read my other story, Freeing the Witch and the (eventual) sequel. In short it is sort of my interpretation, and spin on the Heroes and Villains reality that Isaac made in 4x22-23.

This contains one-shots that take place, before, along or after it, making it very spoiler-y.

If you've already read it, congratulations on finishing! Here are some things to keep you interested in my little world until the sequel is done.

* * *

The Boy and the Deckhand

Henry looked at the man, and then down at the little gold trinket in his hand. "Seriously? Him?" He asked in astonishment. He could see him from his current hiding spot, swabbing the decks. When the talisman had led him here, Henry thought he'd get to meet a pirate, a real one or maybe just a regular boring pirate, not this loser.

 _Maybe he's just responsible?_ Henry reasoned. _Taking care of his boat?_

But that thought was quickly proven wrong. Henry watched men, other navy guys, passed him by, whispering mischievously before 'stumbling' spilling a bottle of alcohol on the recently cleaned ship.

"Your swabbing made me drop my liquor!" The first shouted loudly, making him jump and turn their way. He practically whimpered an apology, it made the men turn to each other snickering. "Well don't just stand there! Clean it up Jones!" They shouted with malice, before throwing the bottle at his head. He ducked, but slipped in his haste, falling on his back with a groan. "And stop being such a clutz deckhand!" they added with a sneer.

"Y-Yes sir." The man replied, getting to his feet slowly, keeping his eyes downcast as he held the mop, his body shaking in fear of the men. He went to the spilled drink, mopping it up with a heavy sigh.

A coward. The stupid trinket wanted him to get a coward to save his mother?

It was a dangerous place, the tower, his mother needed someone with courage, with skill, someone who wouldn't turn to a shaking mess at the first side of trouble.

Maybe Henry should just go to the local tavern, see who he had to pay to get the job done? But the trinket kept pointing to the man, making Henry sigh.

They had given it to him with a promise, that it would lead him to make the right choice when he needed it most, and right now, Henry needed help.

He continued to watch him the next day, watched his near meticulous handling of the boat, how he side stepped missing planks, coiling ropes that had been clumsily left unattended, even sewing tears in the sail that would have had no bearing on the actual function, all with a slight grin and a steady hand.

Henry knew care when he saw it, being the son of the Dark One had taught Henry to be observant, to pick up what a person cared about, whether that be a person or a possession. As silly as that was, Henry was certain that this guy knew this ship, cared for this ship more than anything.

It was rather strange.

Another thing that Henry noticed that unlike the other ships, where multiple servents went from ship to ship, no other deckhand came near the vessel, but when one did, offering his assistance, the man refused.

"I can take it from here mate." He had said gently, eyes never leaving the metal edge he was in the midst of polishing.

"Look, look, I can help you here, and then you can help me with the other two I have-"

But that's when Henry saw it. The man looked up, all shyness vanishing for a second, just a moment, replaced with something else.

"I got it from here _mate_." He practically growled, eyeing where the man stood near the plank to board his ship.

The other deckhand didn't know it, but what Henry saw, was an instinct, a protective one at that, over a silly ship, sure, but it was there nonetheless. Henry wondered what would happen if the other man had insisted more.

Henry looked down at the trinket. _Perhaps you were right all along._ Protective instincts were an important thing after all, if someone didn't have something they wanted to protect, then they would constantly be searching for something they didn't yet have.

His decision was made.

He waited until everyone was off drinking or hitting on the ladies at the bar before approaching the man.

"Ahoy there!" He said taking a bold step on the deck. The man in question flinched, standing up and greeting him with a sheepish smile.

"No one steps aboard the Jewel of the Realm without permission from her captain." He warned, eyes looking around, wary of danger. Henry noticed how he kept his left hand against his side, probably due to an injury of some kind.

"Well, are you going to give me permission then?" He teased, knowing very well that he wasn't said captain.

"I-er. I'm not The Captain." He stuttered, making Henry roll his eyes.

"Then can you bring me to the Captain?" He stressed. An idea already forming in his head, it was obvious that no amount of fame or fortune was going to get this guy to defy the captain, but it wasn't loyalty binding him here either.

Fear was a powerful thing, it was a weapon wielded by Henry's own mother. Perhaps it was time for Henry to try his hand at it as well.

The deckhand led him down into the captain's cabin. "Captain?" He said nervously, entire body tensing. "We have a visitor."

The man at the desk was a pudgy greesey guy with an obnoxious red cap. Henry wanted to gag at the very sight of the slob. He was talking to a woman, laughing merrily from her position on the man's lap. "Jones! Did I _say_ I wanted visitors?" He snapped as their laughter stopped at their intrusion. "Do you _want_ me to show you _again_ what I do to those who don't listen?"

Jones recoiled in fear as the captain stood, glaring harshly at him. "N-No!" He said quickly, practically tripping on his feet to get to the farthest edge of the cabin.

"No what?" The man stated with a sneer, drawing his blade, placing it right by the man's neck.

"N-No Captain." He stuttered. The fat man didn't move his blade.

"See love? Captain's got to have firm control of his ship and all on it." He flirted with the red headed woman.

"Yes, I _see_ that Captain." She purred. "Are you going to kill him?" She narrowed her eyes at the man. "You should totally kill him."

Jones's eyes went wide in panic.

Henry rolled his eyes, no wonder this guy was scared, he had a sick creep as a Captain, who knew how long this guy was under this guy's thumb.

 _Won't matter soon, once you meet mom, you'll be under her thumb until she's done with you._ He thought casually. _Give mom a couple days of entertainment before she gets tired of the coward._

"Captain! I have a job and I'm willing to pay top dollar for it." He declared, pulling out a bag of gold coins. "Can we talk in private?"

He could see the man's eyes gleam at the thought of riches

"Yes, yes, milady, I'll be with you in a moment." He said, nudging her off. She stood with a pout, before exiting. Henry suppressed a groan, he could see the cold coins in the woman's shirt, it was obvious that she was stealing from the stupid man. "Now, what can I do for you boy? Aren't you a little young to hire a navy ship?"

Henry looked up thoughtfully. "Maybe, but I'm definitely too young for this." He started, grabbing his trinket and throwing it at the man's pudgy head. Henry's aim was true and it hit him square in the face, causing him to fall backwards, knocking his head against the far wall.

The Deckhand gasped in fright. "What the h- er. What did you just do lad?"

Henry grinned happily as he walked over to claim his trinket, pocketing it again.

"Well, I knocked out the captain. Now my real offer." He said sitting in the big comfy chair, feet on the desk. "I want you to go here." He said handing him a map. "The bottomless sea, it's due east of-"

But the man already nodded, putting down the map with a look of distaste. "I know the place lad. Those are treacherous waters, why do you want to go there?"

Henry thought about telling the truth, he could see something trustworthy in the cowardly deckhand, but he didn't.

"Someone is trapped there. Nothing serious just-"

Jones looked at him, not believing a word. "I may be a coward, but I'm no fool." He said sharply. "I know what is held prisoner there." He looked both ways, before whispering it crossly. "The Dark One."

Well, now Henry had to come out with it.

"Fine, I need the Dark One's help. I need you to go and rescue her." He informed the man. There was no way he was revealing exactly why to this guy.

"And why would I do that?" He asked. "You just knocked out my Captain! I'd be condemning the land to endless darkness!"

Henry rolled his eyes. "Please, you don't even like him. If you don't do it, then he's probably going to assume you attacked him, and if he was considering killing you because a wench told him to-"

The man interrupted. "Lad, is that really the kind of language you should be-"

Henry ignored him. "Then what would he do for this?"

He could see the man hesitate, staring at the prone form. "So it's either free the Dark One and doom the realm? Have my soul ripped out by the Dark Swan, or die by his blade?" Voice on the verge of panic. "What makes you think I just won't leave the ship and bolt, never to return?" He challenged.

Henry smirked. "Because you'd never see the ship again, don't try to deny it, you love it, besides, if you return with the Dark One, I promise, you won't be killed, the Dark One would owe you a favor, and the Dark One always pays their dues."

He sighed, muttering either a silent curse or prayer, Henry wasn't sure.

"Help me get the Captain off the ship, we'll leave as soon as possible." He said, relenting.

Henry smiled helping the deckhand roll the unconscious fat guy onto the dock before stepping off.

"Aren't you coming lad?" He shook his head.

"Sorry, ocean? Water? Nowhere to go or do? Not really my thing. Bring her here as soon as possible, I'll probably stick around here for a while." He said nonchalantly, handing the deckhand a metal key, they always used the same metal chains on Emma, always the same lock. "for the locks."

The man looked wary as he took it but nodded.

"Aye, I'll try to get back as soon as possible, the crew should be back in a week, with any luck I'll be back before then and everything an go back to how it was, yes, no need to be alarmed, everything is fixable." He stuttered, running a hand through his hair.

The speech was obviously more for him than for Henry. He thought things would turn out the same? Henry wanted to laugh.

 _No one met the Dark One without changing a little. He'd definitely lose his heart, maybe even himself along the way._

 _"_ Good luck."

Henry watched the ship sail away, looking around, a glimmer in his eye as he re-entered the village.

 _Now, what does a kid need to do to have some fun around here…_

* * *

Short and sweet, just a taste of some Captain Cobra, and a fill in of a plot hole that you may or may not have noticed.

Requests will be considered in PM or review.

~Luna


	2. Tears of Ice

Definitely read Freeing the Witch first, just in case last chapter didn't make that clear. This is more of a fill in the blanks group of stories, or a glimpse in my head canons for this universe.

* * *

Tears of Ice

They were dead. _They were dead._

The man that brought her meals everyday told her that they were dead. He said it casually, as if he was discussing the weather or Anna's newest stunt, not the death of the king and queen, not the death of her parents.

" _No, your highness, I don't believe your parents will make it here for Anna's birthday. I believe their ship was found in shambles right off the coast, no survivors they say. Would you like one piece of toast or two today?"_

For a second Elsa wanted to cry and scream in rage, in outrage.

Mother. Father.

They told Elsa that they would never leave her. They promised that all of this would just be temporary. That she would get control of this. This curse. They promised her they'd be here for her! That eventually she could leave her room and have a normal life.

They lied. They lied to her.

And now they were dead.

Once she was alone, free of prying eyes, Elsa slumped to her knees, staring at the tray in front of her. The cook had made her favorite, as if her famous tomatoe stew could fight off the grief the fear that crept up in her heart. Elsa looked up.

Snow hung in the air, and the walls, once warm and vibrant, were blue with ice. It made Elsa flinch. It was more proof of why she hadn't left her home in years.

She let out a cry of anguish.

What was she to do now? Elsa was all alone.

 _But that's not new_. She reminded herself. _Ever since I almost killed…_

She shuddered at the memory. _I've been all alone._

It was that thought, that realization that gave her the strength; it gave her the will, to pull herself to her feet again, whipped away her tears.

She smiled; rumor had it that when your heart completely froze over, your tears would be nothing more than ice.

They came to her that next day, a slew of advisers, they told her of the new responsibilities she, Elsa, the future Queen, would have. She'd have to meet with other rulers, other kingdoms, she'd have to deal with trade and conflicts and the nobles. They each took an awkward seat at her little table, a table she used to have tea parties with her friends, with Anna.

But it was the only option, she refused to leave her room. This room had been enchanted so her powers would be unable to escape its confines. This room kept her kingdom safe from her grief.

Elsa sat away from them, sitting on the bed, looking out the window, the window besides the vines that snaked up the palace, listening as they spoke, but staring out at the calm ocean, the very ocean that had taken her parents and cursed her to this fate. She would be Queen. That window had been her salvation since it was decided that she was to hide.

"Elsa?" Came a sudden knock on her bedroom door. It opened to reveal long red hair, dark blue eyes now puffy and red from crying. "Is it true? Are they really gone?"

She was staring at the face of Anna, oh sweet Anna. She hadn't seen her since she was small, only seven years old. Now Elsa was nearly 25 and Anna was about 20.

Elsa stood, but said nothing, what could she say? Sorry? I'm an ice power wielding monster? I shut you out because last time I let someone in, they hurt me? And the time before that I hurt them?

She said nothing.

Anna went towards her, an embrace. Elsa quickly realized, her sister was trying to hug her. She wanted to, more than anything; Elsa wanted to touch her, to hold her, to promise to never shut her out again.

But then she saw it, deep in her subconscious.

 _Taunting words, her fear and anger flaring. She reached out her hand._

" _Elsa no!" They shouted._

 _She saw a gasp, children fleeing, a figure on the ground, shivering from the cold._

 _One thought in her mind as her parents appeared, as they were taken to the rock trolls._

 _I'm a monster._

Elsa wrapped her arms around herself and averted her eyes, shaking her head. Elsa would hurt her, she'd kill her. Anna deserved better, she didn't deserve a monster for a sister. Elsa couldn't see the hurt on her face, instead she just heard Anna pace slowly out of the room, heard her wail in agony.

"I don't know what I did, but I don't deserve this! Stop shutting me out! We're the only ones we have left!" And then Anna bolted out of the corridor.

The nobles, who had grown silent, barely looked at her. She didn't look at them, she just asked them to continue. No one dared to mention the exchange between the two orphaned sisters, nor the cold tears dripping down Elsa's eyes.

Cold, but not frozen.

Her birthday was supposed to be coronation. She was to turn 28. It was a time honored tradition that when the eldest daughter turned 28 years of age, she would be Queen. She knew it all by heart, they would open the palace, let the kingdom in, it would be full of life and love.

Life and love that Elsa hadn't felt in a long time.

And then afterwards, they'd shut the gates again, and the kingdom would be safe again.

 _You may be safe in here, but you're not happy._

She held a coin in her palm, given to her by the only person who had ever climbed over her ice walls, who always made her dream of the days when there were no walls, when there was just Elsa.

 _"Elsa my love, I'll come back to you before you become Queen, I'll stand by your side, you never lose control when I'm around." He had said cheekily. "I'll come back and ask your father for his blessing. I want to marry you my beautiful Ice Princess."_

 _She had believed him. That night when they laid in her bed, tangled up in each other. Not a single snowflake danced in the air, when she hadn't thought about suppressing her powers since he appeared bright eyed and smiling._

 _"Promise me?" She had asked._

 _He slipped the coin in her hand. "This is all that I have left of my family, I want you to have it, keep it safe, I'll take it back when I can put a ring on your finger."_

 _She believed him._

But that belief had died with her parents, when he had not come as he promised, when he never came back to her. Today he was supposed to be here, help her keep control, keep both her secret and her kingdom safe!

Even though he had broken his promise, Elsa still kept the coin, rubbed it's simple grooves whenever she felt scared or lonely, it helped her forget for a moment that he wasn't coming back, it helped her imagine the feeling of seeing him climb through her window, a smile on his face, an apology on his lips.

She just held that coin and let the fear drift away.

It was a miracle when nothing went wrong, when the second her pale hands touched her crown, touched her thrown and scepter, nothing went wrong. A part of her blamed her constant practice and control.

Another part blamed the coin in her pocket.

"Elsa! Elsa!" Anna shouted in the midst of the ball. It was the first time she had spoken to Elsa since their parents' death, almost a year ago. She was pulling a red haired man behind her, both smiling like mad, looking in each other's eyes. "This is Hans. We're going to get married!"

Her controlled smile had faltered in utter surprise. _"Married?"_ She exclaimed.

 _"I love you Elsa. You are the one for me. I promise you, you my love, have ruined all others for me." He snickered into her ear, warm hand pressed against her cold cheek._

 _She smiled happily at the thought._

Elsa wanted nothing more than to forget him, the man who had broken her heart, he who dared to melt it just to crush it. But she just couldn't help seeing this 'Hans' character as him. People just couldn't help hurting each other.

"How-How long has this been going on?" She eventually forces out, leading them away from the partygoers. Elsa wills herself to keep control, that this man was Anna's love, not hers. Anna knew this man, knew that he wouldn't leave, knew that he was a good-

"A couple hours, but Elsa! I know it! This is true love!" She squeals in delight, spinning around. Anna was just as joyful now as she used to be.

"A…couple hours?"

 _"I knew you were it within five minutes of meeting you." He had admitted under the light of the fire. Her private fireplace was usually off as the cold never really bothered her, but he…he was different. He needed it right now. "I knew that I loved you."_

 _She was tucked under his arm, smiling at him. She felt safe and in control. He helped her keep control._

 _"I love you." She said right back. "I never thought I'd ever be able to say that. I thought I'd be stuck in this room forever, I thought I'd never find someone to love." He shook his head._

 _"One day. I promise you, one day you'll be free."_

Anna nodded excitedly. "I promise my Queen, I'll take excellent care of your sister, we should have the wedding in my kingdom, but we'll be back her during all the holidays, you're welcome to visit of course-"

Elsa shook her head. No. This was not happening, some noble was taking her away, taking away her sister, promising to come back.

 _Why was everyone so content with leaving her, making promises they couldn't keep?_

But worse, the thing that scared the new queen even more was the worry that she was right. Elsa knew that this man, knew his type. Hans was exactly like _him._ He had fooled Anna, just like she had been fooled, he would take her away, break her heart, make her cold and guarded, just like her.

Then Anna would come back and she would be just like her.

Elsa maybe a monster, but she'd fight to the death to make sure Anna was safe and nothing like her.

"No." She said boldly. "I forbid it."

Anna recoiled sharply. "Excuse me? Forbid it? Do I look 12?" She exclaimed, but Elsa just turned away, feeling control slipping, feeling fear and agony settle in. She reached for the coin in her pocket, holding it like a lifeline. "Elsa!" Anna shouted chasing after her, grabbing her wrist. "You can't run away like that! Like you always do!"

Anna was furious, it made Elsa rub the coin even more, trying to remember the good days, days by the river eating sandwiches, days in her room playing cards to pass the time, days they made promises for when she got under control, she had to get it under control.

"Elsa!" Anna shouted, running after her, Hans at her heel. "Just because you never loved anything or anyone doesn't mean I have to!" She cried sharply, making Elsa lose her concentration, her sister caught up to her grabbing her wrist, it threw her glove and coin from her hand. She gasped out in fright, sending a wave of ice in her wake.

"Control. Control. I got to keep it under control." She chanted, seeing the fear on Anna's face. Her eyes searched the empty hall way for her coin. She needed it, needed him, where was he? He promised he'd be here. He was supposed to be here! She saw it, glittering in the light, she fell on her knees, crawling towards it, but a heavy boot fell seconds before she could get to it.

"What are you demon?" Hans hissed, he was holding a terrified Anna close to his chest, a sword towards her throat.

"I-I I'm sorry. It was an accident. I'm-" She stuttered, getting to her feet.

" _I'm so sorry." She wailed, ice hanging in the air. "You don't remember, but you shouldn't be here, it's not safe." But Elsa couldn't bear to let him go._

 _"Its ok, I'm here. I know what happened, it's alright. Everything is alright now." He said softly, rubbing his hand against her back, warm circles._

 _"They're scared of me." She wailed._

 _"I'm not scared of you, never have been, never will be."_

Anna parted from Hans, approaching her slowly. "Elsa…what are you?" She asked in a whisper.

"Cursed. I'm cursed." She admitted in a near sob. "I can't control it; I'm so scared of hurting you Anna. I'm scared of you getting hurt, just please let's get out of here and talk and-"

Anna shook her head, grabbing Hans's hand. "He's my true love, maybe we should all talk and find a way to get you help." She reasoned.

Elsa didn't want him there, didn't want him near her, she just wanted her coin. It made thing better, easier, helped her forget that he wasn't coming back.

"Yes, we can come up with a plan." He reasoned. "A way to help you deal with this problem, first we can get Anna on the throne, get this pressure off you-" She looked up, brows furrowing.

She didn't want to advocate the thrown, it was her parents' legacy, it was her right. Even in her room, it was accepted that the thrown would be _hers_.

"Yes, yes, then we can ask the rock trolls to do something, bind it or take it or something-

She recoiled in alarm, the _curse_ was her inability to control it, not the powers itself. She just needed to control it, like when she was younger, back then it was so easy.

 _He never wanted me to get rid of it._ She remembered. _He just wanted me to accept it. It's a part of me._

"It makes so much sense why you kept away from me for so long Elsa! Why didn't you tell me? I would have understood, I get it now!"

She didn't Anna didn't understand. All this time, Elsa felt guilty for shutting her out, but now, now she felt-

"If you want to go back in your room again, its ok, I can take care of the people, I can get things moving, Hans and I, we're your family, I-"

She felt blind rage. Rage at another person trying to make decisions for her, first the Gods for giving her these powers she couldn't control, then to _him_ for not being here when she needed him, now at Anna for not understanding.

"No." She responded flatly, coldly. "I don't need your help." She snapped, a strange ice in her voice. "This is my kingdom and my powers." She demanded.

"But Elsa-" She shook her head, eyes glaring at Hans.

"Shouldn't it be the people's choice, no one is going to want a monster ruling them." He shot back.

"But Hans-" Anna tried again.

"And who's going to tell them, you?" She surged forward, ripping the other glove from her hand. She was just so angry, all this time in her room, going stir crazy, shutting people out refusing-

 _"Run away with me Elsa, please. You know how much I hate it here without you, run away with me and we can be happy, our parents can't stop us."_

 _Elsa shook her head._

 _"This room is enchanted, my powers can't escape it, out there, I- I might do something…"_

-to follow her heart when she had the chance, it was all for this. For her kingdom, for Arendelle. She wasn't going to let this man take it from her. Elsa knew a coup when she saw it. He was nothing like _him. He_ just left, _he_ would never use her.

Elsa wondered what would happen if she just blasted him with magic, let it all out in a wave.

"Yes." He dared. "You'll have to kill me to keep me quiet."

 _Oh I'll kill you for much less._ A quiet voice whispered in her ear, _I'll kill you to keep Anna safe!_

" _No Elsa!"_ Shouted a voice, rushing in between, but it was too late. Elsa's magic had left her hand, striking Anna in the chest.

She bit back a gasp as her sister crumbled into Hans's arms.

"Anna!"

Elsa ran from the castle, ran as far as she possibly could go. She had just attacked her sister, a fit of rage and terror mixed together, she couldn't go back, couldn't ever go back. She was a monster, she almost killed her sister.

She stopped hours later, as her legs felt like lead and her breathing was ragged from both misery and exhaustion. Elsa looked down, seeing the coin in her hand, her hand had gripped it so tightly, the initials were marked on her hand BWJ.

"Why aren't you here?" She pleaded at it, the symbol of her love, of a promise shattered.. "You promised." She sobbed.

"Mortals make promises they can't keep to people like us." Said a voice.

Elsa looked up.

"My name's Ingrid. I can help you. I can help you control it." She told her. "You just have to come with me."

Elsa lifted her hand to her cheek, feeling the tears on her face.

They were solid ice.

"Ok."

* * *

Ok, I did kind of worry if this sounded more like a Frozen fan fic rather than a OUAT one, but there is a little more to it to the original story that I felt the need to add. During 4a, I loved how they didn't talk about the movie, at all. It was a sort of, accept it as fact and move on type deal. I decided that since I changed Elsa, had to change Frozen a fraction.

I mean, all villains need tragic backstories after all.

I did including some obvious OUAT incorporated, along with something I hinted at during Freeing the Witch. Its sort of important, a bit spoiler if you squint and definitely when/if you look back at it in hindsight. Let me know if you have any idea what I'm talking about, I'd love to hear opinions, speculations, etc. It warms my heart.

Pun intended.

On other news, I either post this a week after the last or after I get to a predetermined point of the sequel's plot. I have 5 planned out, only the 3rd one is incomplete at the moment.

I'm so excited to finish this thing (the sequel). Its at 64k at the moment, the first time I finished writing freeing the witch, it was at about 50k, ended up, including author's notes etc, at around 66k. So this one is going to be way longer. I hope it comes out alright...

Guest reviews:

 _ **andria**_ : Glad you liked it! Hopefully you like this one just as much.

Don't forget to review!

~Luna


	3. Diaries of a Deckhand

I see this in other stories so I feel obligated to include it too.

Warning: Alcohol consumption and the potential for a dangerous situation, but its obviously not. I wouldn't do that.

Drink responsibly.

* * *

Diaries of a Deckhand

Killian Jones was 20 when he first saw her, dark hair, dressed in reds and golds, buying herbs at the market. He'd been in the process of searching through a merchant's charts when he saw her.

She looked up and smiled at him, he blushed brightly, averting his gaze, trying to concentrate on the maps he was looking for, Oz, he was looking for one of Oz. The legendary place, few have seen but its existence had never been questioned.

When Killian looked back up, the woman was gone.

Killian sighed.

 _She's way out of my league…probably looking at someone else behind me…a woman like her would never look twice at a man like me._

She'd look at Liam if he was here and not stuck on that bloody island eating coconuts running away from the demon children. Killian looked back at the maps, Oz, if he found a way to Oz, legend had it he could find the ruby slippers and transport himself that way.

He could find Liam.

That night he dreamed of dark hair and kind eyes.

XXX

He hadn't meant to talk back, hadn't meant to be disrespectful, but his words had slipped before Killian had even realized it.

" _You're tearing the sails!"_

Liam's sails.

" _Stop!"_

Liam had bought them with him when he was ten, and the Captain was slicing them up because some wench said they were in her sun. He couldn't help it, it was disrespectful to the Jolly Roger.

But here he was, back at port with his back sliced up nearly as bad as the ship he had tried to protect, tried and failed.

Killian took an unsteady step forward, seeing the blood dripping onto the ground.

 _Just get away, somewhere safe, an alley, an abandoned hut._ He told himself. The Captain hated when he got blood on the ship and in all honesty, Killian hated being seen after a particular bad night, he just wanted to slink away, lick his wounds before retuning, pretending that nothing had happened.

He spotted an alley behind a tavern, hard to see unless one was looking. He breathed a sigh of relief ducking against the wall, going as far back as it allowed, falling to his knees in this hidden area.

Killian didn't know at what point he fell asleep.

(Asleep sounds better then unconscious after all)

"Hey, sir? Come on wake up, are you alright?" Killian stirred. "How much have you had to drink?" Someone was touching him, hands on his head trying to get him to sit up. He gasped as pressure was placed against his back. The figure pulled away.

"Nothing." He said in a daze forcing himself to his feet. "Sorry, I'll go." He said instinctively. He'd have to find somewhere else to rest and recover. He took a couple steps before he suddenly felt light headed and he leaned against the wall for a moment, breathing deeply. He heard a voice far off before arms secured themselves around his arms, being careful not to touch his back.

Killian didn't know what was going on as he thrashed to get away.

"Hey, sir? Look at me." Said a voice directly in front of him.

Dark hair. Kind eyes. A smile.

"It's you…" He slurred before passing out completely.

XXX

Killian woke up on a couch on his stomach, he tried to sit up, but the simple movements made him cry out in pain.

"Hey, relax." Said a calm voice, a hand on his arm; Killian pulled away in surprise. "You lost a lot of blood, but you're stable now." They continued, not replacing the contact. He slowly eased and started making sense of the situation. She held a bowl of soup in her hands. "How about something to eat."

The dark haired maiden was sitting beside him. It appeared she had cared to his wounds, but that didn't make sense, no one ever cared for his wounds.

(Save for Victor and Elizabeth, but that was because of their debt to Liam.)

It had to be a trick. He had to get out of there. He rose to his feet mumbled a rushed apology, and a quick thanks before trying to rush out the door. However, Killian Jones was not that lucky. The kind sweet look on the woman's face turned stubborn as she grabbed him by the ear as he tried to flee.

"And where do you think your going?" She demanded. "I did not patch you back together just for you to ruin all my hard word mister. You are going to sit here, eat my soup whether you like it or not and recover, do I make myself clear?"

Killian, stunned was pulled back to the couch, sitting with his back away from the side, nodding dumbly. The brunette smiled, handing him the mug. "Good." Sweet expression returning.

"My name's Milah." She introduced.

"K-Killian." He replied.

XXX

It didn't take Killian long to learn a bit about the brunette. She was the town's healer, the most beloved maiden. She hated seeing anyone in any sort of pain, so when someone had a problem, no matter what it was, she did her best to solve it.

When she was around town, most did anything they could to keep her happy, to cater to whatever demands she had. She never took advantage of anyone, but when someone tried to be stubborn, tried to bully her in anyway, did anything that Milah saw as a challenge, the other side of her came out.

A fiery wrath that had any sane man scurrying to make her happy again, her tongue could rip a man to shreds.

In exchange, Killian told her some stories, mostly counting adventures from Liam, other times, the amusing antics Killian witnessed from the crew. Her eyes brighten and she laughs with that laugh of hers that one would confuse with an angel's singing.

It was no surprised to Killian, that after only a few days of staying with and conversing with her, Killian fell head over heels in love with her.

There was just a small problem, the beautiful enchantress was wed to a brave knight and had a 10 year old boy, Bae.

So when his wounds are healed enough, he bids goodbye to Milah, expecting a polite reply and perhaps some warning about falling into the harbor (his explanation this time about his injuries).

"Killian?" She asks hesitantly, holding his hand with both of hers. "Next time the Jewel is in port, would you please visit me?"

In the back of his mind, Killian wonders if it's appropriate for a married woman to seek his company, but in that instant he doesn't care.

"Of course." He says like a promise, watching her eyes as he leaves.

He must have imagined the longing in her brown eyes.

The next time he visits, he brings her a story of traders trying to take advantage of his captain, of how they threatened him with the Queen's name and it made them give the Captain whatever they wanted. He gives her a package of rare spices and herbs he managed to procure as well. She smiles and welcomes him inside for dinner.

The following time he visits, he has a broken arm and a story about slipping on the mop. He had broken the wooden creature he had purchased for her.

The visits soon begin to mesh together to the point that he forgets how many times she's greeted him, just that she smiles every time and occasionally hugs him. On occasion her grip lingers a tad longer than expected, other times they fall asleep talking on the couch and he has to hold her so she won't fall off.

He tries to be a gentleman, but he's found it become more difficult as she looks moe beautiful under the light of the moon

It occurs to him that in all his visits, her husband is never around, never present. At first he had worried, worried that he'd find him there in his home with his wife in potentially improper situations.

But he is never confronted, he never even hear the man's name.

He asks her one day, as he teaches her to play dice as his brother taught him.

(With loaded die)

Her grin disappears, tension reaching her features, she clenches her fists so tightly they turn white.

"He's out." She says simply, curtly. She obviously doesn't want to talk about it.

He visits her dozens of time in the following months, enough times to finally earn the luxury of meeting her son, her Bae. She hadn't wanted him to meet the boy as he didn't like being around her patients.

(Apparently there were a lot of them)

"But you're not one of my patients, at least not just one of them, you're my friend." She insists. It brings a smile to his face because even if he cannot act on his feelings, his feelings of being hopelessly in love with Milah, at least he can be her friend.

It's enough for him.

"Bae, this is Killian." She says. He looks at the boy in his clean nice clothes his long dark hair and the suspicious look he was giving him.

"Why's he dressed like that?" Is all the boy can say, arms crossed.

"Baelfire!" Milah lectures, Killian chuckles.

"I'm a sailor." He replies. "This is what we wear." The boy shrugs, telling his mother some excuse about how the tutor wants him to read some book. Killian knows a thinly veiled excuse when he hears it, but doesn't take offense. He'll take whatever Mialh and her son have to offer him, whether that be an acquaintanceship or even friendship.

It's more than he has, more than he's had in nearly a decade.

XXX

He's on his way to visit Milah again when he hears it, quite muffled sobs. It makes him stop in his tracks as he looks around for the source of the sound. It comes down an alley, sitting on a box, a boy curled in on himself crying his eyes out.

"Lad, are you alright?" He says hesitantly. The boy jerks his head up, looking right at him. He recognizes those brown eyes anywhere. "Bae?"

The boy quickly wipes away his tears. "I'm fine." He mutters. "Perfectly fine!"

He's not fine, but he doesn't look physically hurt.

"Bae? What happened?" Killian asked. "Or at least, if you don't want to tell me, how about I walk you home so you can tell your mother?"

He shakes his head stubbornly. "I don't want mom to know." He eventually spits out. "It'll just make things worse."

Killian's not sure what to do, so he simply sighs, pulling himself up besides Bae on the box. "Alright lad, your call, tell me what you want me to do, besides leaving here all by your lonesome." He tells him.

"I don't know how to sword fight." He admits. "I should know, my dad is legendary with his sword, but I can't seem to get it right." He admits. "The other kids started picking on me when I messed up, asking how I could possibly be my father's son if I can't do it right."

Killian sighed in understanding. He thinks back on his last time holding a sword, when he held it and tried to fight off the Captain's men. It had been a failed incident, but Killian remembered at least the basics.

"Then lets fix it shall we?" He asked. "If I may?"

Bae looks up wide eyed as Killian picks up a stick from the ground, handing it to him. "I'm a bit rusty, and I don't have a sword of my own, but how about I show you what I know and we go from there? Can't have these lads picking on you eh?"

He sees a slight smile on the boy as he whipes away his tears and holds the stick in a clumsy stance.

"Alright, widen your feet ok now…"

XXX

He walks Bae home after a couple of hours of practicing and he seems more hopeful than he had been before, thanking him dismissively before rushing to his quarters to study. He arrives just in time to see Milah crying on the couch.

Killian's reaction is instinctive, hand on her shoulder, asking what had happened, what was wrong.

"Another month! He's going to be away for another month!" She wails, pulling herself into his chest. It surprises him, but he wrapps around her stroking her hair, trying to get Milah to calm herself. "I love him Killian, but he's never around anymore, all he cares for is his position in the army, what about Bae? What about me? If that man's not too careful I'll…"

She stops, hand over her mouth, apologizing under her breath,

"I shouldn't be doing this feeling this…" She mumbles.

"Doing…feeling…what?" He barely has the courage to ask. He doesn't dare hope.

"I shouldn't be falling in love with you." She admits as she kisses him, softly but surely.

"Just as I shouldn't have fallen head over heels in love with you." He admits once the tender embrace ends. "I'm sorry Milah, we shouldn't be doing this, you're married."

She nods in agreement.

He advises her that in a month, when her husband returns and she has a long chat with him, to ask him to show his son how to wield a sword properly.

Milah agrees to that.

XXX

He doesn't see her again for another 3 months, wanting to give her space and wanting to get over her, but every day without her feels more painful than the last. It just so happens that when he turns 21 in her village, the crew rallies around him. He finds drink after drink in his grasp.

"Come on lad, have a drink! Be one of us for the night! Stop your moping!" They holler practically dragging him inside, much to his conusion. These men had barely said two words to him without a scowl or a shove. Killian found their sudden friendliness rather alarming.

But Killian was never one to look a gift horse in the mouth. He took the drink, looking at it carefully.

"Don't tell me it's your first drink sailor!" Sneers a voice. It makes Killian's blood go cold as he remembers the familiar voice, and the dark full beard.

"N-No sir." He says simply. The man's friendly enough and it seems he doesn't remember him. "But it's my first drink with…" He looks back at the joyous crew members. "My mates." He settles on. He takes a hesitant sip.

"That's not how it's done lad!" The man bellows, making him flinch and the amber liquid slosh in the glass. He takes his own glass and swallowing it in one foul swoop. Killian hesitates before mimicking his motion.

Why not?

The crew lets out a howl of laughter as he takes another, and another.

Before long, Killian can barely see straight, he's mumbling and the things that come out of his mouth…its bloody strange.

"You were right mates, the deckhand does make for a good source of entertainment." He recalls…someone saying, he feels someone push him into someone.

 _When had he gotten up?_

"Killian! You're here! Your…drunk." He hears a woman say. He nods.

"Birthday!" He says with a drunken laugh. "Did you know Liam gave me a wooden sword for my birthday? Now I've got lots and lots and lots of ruuuuum!" He finds himself losing his balance, swaying like he was on the Jewel and it was in a frightful storm.

"Storm! There's a storm, that's why I can't stand you know lass?" He tells the woman. "You might need a coat for the storm." He warns her. He can make out dark curls from his drunken haze.

"How much have you had to drink?" She asks, righting him, he suddenly finds himself sitting in a chair.

"Drink? Why would I drink? We're on a Navy ship!" He laughs. "Liam would hate it." He tells her. "Liam Bloody hates the Navy." He flinched at the word, trying and failing to bring a finger to his lips, a shushing motion.

"Don't tell him the Jolly's a Navy ship now." He tells her.

She sighs, he suddenly feels a hand on his head, lifting his head up, she's looking at his eyes.

"Oh sweetie, you're past drunk aren't you?" She said softly. He shook his head.

"Don't want to brood no more." He admits. "Is that what it's called, that's what they call it. I call it nurseing a… nurseing a …" He couldn't find the word.

"Broken heart!" He said with a laugh. "Fell in love with someone I shouldn't have." He tells her, bopping her on the nose. "But it's a secreeet." He warns.

She laughs.

"Ok Killian, come on, lets get out of here." She says, pulling him up and leading him out the door. Her gentle touch on his shoulder.

She shakes his head. "Bad form to take advantage of a woman." He states. She just laughs, as he sags against her, his steps are unsteady, but she wraps her arm around him, steadying him.

"What if I wanted to take advantage of you Killian?" He chuckles. He can feel her tense, can't quite make out her face, but he can tell she frowns at the way he laughed. Killian couldn't help it.

"Why not lass? Everyone else takes advantage of the bumbling Deckhand? Why not a beautiful woman?" His laugh is dark, only matched by his despair and utter hopelessness.

"Killian…" She sighs. "I wish you'd remember this when you woke up."

He remembers her opening a door, laying him on a bed, his head in her lap, fingers through his hair. He sighs in contentment.

"Well lass? Going to have your wicked way with me?" He prodded. She didn't answer him, just continuing her movements, they were calming and relaxing.

Killian barely realized when his eyes had fluttered shut, and he'd drifted to sleep in this strange woman's home.

XXX

He woke up with a headache to rival the dead. It burned and throbbed and everything was so bright, his sleeping quarters on the Jewel were never this bright.

He moved his hand, feeling cloth rather than wood. His eyes snapped open and he practically jumped out of his skin. He was in a home. Someone's home, worse, he was in a bed. He shivered.

Killian had no recollection of being here, a thousand thoughts ran through his head. Had he attracted someone's attention? Had he disgraced his name even more, bedding an unmarried woman? How far had it gone? How much had he drunk?

He was staring at the bed when he heard a voice behind him. He jumped whirling around, eyes wide.

"Milah? What? How? Did I? Did we?" He can hear the slur in his voice, he's still on unsteady feet and can barely hear over the pounding in his ears. He presses his face into his hand to try to bring some instance of relief but finds none.

At least until he feels her hand on his shoulder leading him back to the bed. He resists, wide eyed and terrified. The last thing he wanted was to have bad form with Milah, and here he was in her bed chambers.

"Shh." She murmured. "Its ok. You had too much to rink last night. I'm surprised you haven't gotten sick."

He gives a soft smile.

"It's a Jones thing. We get wasted, we get intolerable, but Jones men don't get sick from good rum." He says proudly, head hitting the pillow as he let out a content sigh. "I'm never drinking again." He sighs, again trying to sooth his pounding headache.

"Especially with those cretins, trust me Killian, you should only drink with people you trust." She informed him in a lecturing voice she usually only used on Bae.

Usually.

"How much do you remember?" She asked, sitting on a chair besides him, holding his hand as he closed his eyes. He was so tired.

"Not much, just starting to drink and then meeting a beautiful lass and then…nothing." He explains.

"I went to the tavern as I usually do, and found you stumbling around, the men were picking on you, teasing you, engaging you in a conversation when it was obvious that you had gone too far. They were even trying to talk you into taking a swim." She explained.

Killian didn't remember that.

"I convinced them that I was a bar wench and I wanted to take you home to uh…for some entertainment." Milah blushed heavily at that.

"I remember you saying you would take advantage of me." He whispered.

"Killian, you know I would never-" She said suddenly eyes flashing with fire e recognized. He shook his head.

"I know love, I know." He insisted. "Thank you for looking after me" He says. Even after he'd crossed the line, after she knew that their feelings would do nothing but cause her strife, he still took care of him. Milah was an angel.

"Killian, will you do something or me?" She asks.

He nods. "Anything."

He expected something along the lines of: 'Disappear and never come back.' Or 'stop complicating my life.'

Instead, he got: "Tell me, are those men the ones who hurt you?"

He flinched, denying instantly, it was an automatic reaction.

"Tell the truth. Killian, please."

Killian sighed and nodded. "Captain likes to keep us in line you see, and, and, the crew sometimes likes to remind me of it, that's all, its no big deal Milah." He says quickly, seeing the horror on her face.

"I knew it!" She screeches in blind rage. "After how they were talking to you, treating you! After what you said, I just knew!" She practically roared. "I'm going to go march down there and give them a piece-" She had turned, starting to storm out of the room, but Killian was quick, getting to his feet, and catching her arm.

"Don't." He said sternly. "Milah, I'm serious." He insisted.

"Why do you go back there? If the Captain and the crew _abuse_ you, because this isn't some form of discipline Killian, its straight on _abuse."_ She demanded.

"Its Liam's ship." He admitted. "I have to protect her."

Her eyes softened as he told her about Liam and how he'd been captured on the Jolly, he'd been working ever since to bring him home.

"Then why not leave? Continue your search. I'm sure your brother would understand that you can't be risking your life over a few planks and some sails." Milah insisted.

Killian smiled softly.

"It's home."

She approached him carefully, placing her hand on his arm, guiding them both around her waist ans placed her own on his face.

"Killian, please, don't leave again." She begged in a small voice. "I've been thinking everyday about what happened, what we said. And I've come to a conclusion."

Killian's face was pink, body stiff, but he didn't let go of her, the beautiful Queen who wanted to be held by him.

"I don't love my husband. I haven't for a long time. I want you." She insisted. "Stay here with me." She begged.

He faltered. "I can't." He said softly. "Not yet. I need to find Liam first. Once he has his ship back, I promise you love, I'll never leave your side."

She smiled, leaning up and kissed him.

Their first kiss was desperate and needy. This was something else, something lighter and brighter. It made him love her more for the way he felt holding her.

"Promise me you'll always come back."

He grinned. "As long as you're here waiting for me." He replied.

XXX

He kept his promise.

After they buried her, many years later, he never came back.

* * *

Drink with people you trust, that's all I'm saying. Not my best work, but I like it just the same.

My favorite one-shot is the next one.

A little MilahxKillian teaser, which isn't always favored in fanfics, but in canon and in my story, I think their relationship is very important. Its a defining moment to both of them, I don't always like when certain stories depict Milah or Neal so villainous. Even though its usually fun to read sometimes.

Share your thoughts...

But anyway, its been more than a week between posts, sorry about that. I got sort of stuck at a part, but then I decided "Hey, you know that way you carefully planned and organized what's going to happen for the last 5 chapters? Lets do something completely different!"

And after what I just wrote...when I post it in 20+ weeks, I may have to go into hiding. (beware of chapter 20) sorry, just excited rambles.

On a side note, when I write, I use stars, the symbol besides the 8, to have sort of a scene break. I've just discovered that fanfic no likey, now I'm wondering if i used them in Freeing the Witch. uggggg. I used so many in the sequel. taking them out is going to be soooo annoying.

Guest Reviews:

andria: Backstory is important, I usually think of everyone's backstory before i even dabble with including them. So I'm hoping to include more backstory and side story one-shots. Hope you like this one too.

This isn't getting as much attention, which I totally expected, but I'm going to keep writing it anyway, helps me keep from getting writers block and to organize my thoughts a bit.

 _Next: Letters Home_

~Luna


	4. Letters Home

Letters Home (FW)

 _Dear little brother,_

 _Happy birthday, 7 years old is a special milestone for a boy, I hope you're celebrating it with all your mates. I remember celebrating it myself with some of my dearest friends. With this letter I have sent a wooden sword, my first weapon given to me by father. I hope he uses it to teach you as he had taught me._

 _I'm currently serving as the navigator on the Black Pearl, Captain Walton has been kind and fair to me as the youngest on his vessel. However, these last few days have been rather stressful for the man, we've became stuck in the ice and the crew is concerned over whether our survival is still in the cards for us._

 _A few hours ago we pulled a man from the ice, he was gravely ill, malnourished and had lost the will to keep going. I don't know why, but I begged the captain to help him, to take him on the ship. He agreed, but I fear the man won't make it through the night._

 _But brother, I have faith, I know that if a man found by himself so far north as we are, that it must be here for a good reason and helping those in need is only good form._

 _I promise brother, that this won't be the last you hear of your elder brother._

 _I love you._

 _Your elder brother_

 _-Liam Jones_

xxx

"Jones! Get in here!" Barked the captain, rousing him from his slumber. Liam Jones, only 22 years of age, bolted up on unsteady legs, pulling his navel coat on, rushing from the common room towards where the Captain was waiting in the hall way.

"Yes Captain?" He said quickly, greeting him.

"The man you spotted, he survived the night, as you were the one who found him, you shall be responsible for his care for as long as he is with us, is that understood?"

"Yes Captain!" He replied nodding enthusiastically. He had expected this, in fact he had hoped for the opportunity. The man didn't look anything like the others he had encountered, blonde hair almost white, deathly pale and had weird artifacts in his coat. Liam could just imagine the interesting stories the man could tell, where had he come from? What was he doing here?

"He's in need of nourishment, the cook is heating up broth, go get it and see if he's fit to eat." He continued.

Liam nodded and hoped to it, getting the broth and rushing to the room the stranger was settled in, a spare room usually saved for ladies when they are on board, it was good that none would make such a treacherous voyage, otherwise the man would have to be held in the brig.

The man was barely conscious when he arrived staring at the ceiling with a blank look, muttering curses under his breath. Liam distinctly heard the man praying for death. He pretended he hadn't heard, making a silent wish to change the man's mind.

Liam decided it was time to make his presence known. "Sir?" He prompted, grabbing a chair and placing it beside the man. "How are you feeling?" The man looked at him slowly, trying to force words out but seemed too weak. Liam had expected that. "How about we get you fed and warmed up before you try to speak?" He said moving the bowl closer. "Are you well enough to eat?"

The man struggled to sit up so Liam pulled his shoulders up gently, placing a spoon with the broth in his shaking hands.

He only managed a few spoon-fulls after much prodding, much to Liam's dismay.

"How about some water?" He asked instead.

"Got any rum?" The man asked in a hoarse voice Liam chuckled.

"Sorry sir, we're a navy ship, rum leads to bad form." The man groaned, leaning back down in bed, eyes fluttering shut.

"Where am I?" The man asked next. "Which navy is this? Britain? Portugal?" Liam furrowed his brow. Neither of those names meant a thing to him.

"Arendelle." He said instead. "I'm Liam Jones of Arendelle." He introduced, extending his hand to the man. He took it.

"Victor Frankenstein." He replied with an exhausted expression. "Tell me Jones, do you believe there is a cure to death?"

He furrowed his brows, not knowing where this question came from.

"Well Frankenstein, I don't know a lot about magic, but I've seen some unbelievable things, so I assume anything is possible." He said simply, his father had always said to keep an open mind, it was said that some have lived centuries due to magic, if that wasn't cheating death than Liam didn't know what was.

The man's exhausted expression transformed into a grin.

"I believe I like you Liam Jones of Arendelle."

It was the start of a lifelong friendship.

xxx

 _Dear little brother,_

 _It's been weeks since my last letter, I apologize, I've been rather busy from my duties to the ship combined with my responsibilities caring for Victor, the injured man I told you about in my last letter._

 _Oh Killian, he's such an interesting man, he tells me so much about the world, but not ours, he says he comes from another realm, a realm free of magic, a land of science. He says he's part of an 'Enlightenment' of his realm, a time of great thinkers and new discoveries._

 _I'll admit, it took him a while to open up to me, he's as pig-headed as you are brother, but he has and I'm forever changed by his tales._

 _He's told me his story and now I wish to tell you, you and father._

 _Victor was a scientist, someone well versed in the going ons of the human body, a healer. However he became obsessed with death after the death of his mother from fever. He thought he could find a way to cheat it, even bring back the dead._

 _While you and I know that there is always a price to pay with dark magic, he insists rather wholeheartedly that it was not magic, but science._

 _After hearing all he's suffered, I fail to see the difference._

 _Anyway, he managed to create life, created a…creature as he explains, made of the dead's limbs and organs, but once he rose, Victor became terrified of it, of the monster he made. In his terror, he fled, leaving the beast on its own, very bad form if I do say so myself. You and I know perfectly well what being abandoned feels like._

 _But he was frightened, so at least I understand._

 _He was dealing with an eight foot monstrosity, not a child and a newborn._

 _My apologies brother, you know how I get when thinking about her, and all she's cost us, back to the story…_

 _The beast on the other hand, did not understand. He became angry over this abandonment; he vowed vengeance towards his creator and abducted Victor's fair fiancée Elizabeth Whale on the eve of their would-be wedding after killing his brother and his dearest friend. Victor tried to chase after them, but fell through a portal, into our realm. He wondered around trying to get back until he eventually stopped, unable to continue, where we found him._

 _Being separated from your love is tragic Killian, a fate I wouldn't wish upon anyone, and to think your love lost or scared, it's torture._

 _After this expedition, I promised Victor to help him find a way to the other realm and to rescue his beloved. I know if anything happened to my beloved, I'd stop at nothing to rescue my fair princess._

 _But you're too young to understand something like that Killian. One day you'll meet your match, a woman worth ruining your entire life for._

 _I pray that you do, because that's when you know it's true._

 _I love you Killian, have father help you write back to me, I'd love to hear from you._

 _Your elder brother,_

 _-Liam Jones_

xxx

They return months later, Victor's arm is broken from a terrible fall he had taken, Liam has a cut on his side, along with a plethora of bruises, expertly stitched up by the good doctor, and a blonde woman dressed in dirt and rags but looked relatively unharmed save for the rope burns around her wrists from where the creature had restrained her.

After docking, Liam had found a sorcerer who knew how to travel between realms, he now owed the man a favor, but seeing the look on Victor's face as he held his love, as Elizabeth fussed over the broken arm, telling him that he should not have come for her, as they had tricked the monster and killed it with a well-placed stab to the heart, he knew it was worth it.

"What's next?" Elizabeth asked in a timid voice. "Where will we go? I know you said this land is safe, that we won't have to worry about people knowing what happened…"

The monster had wreaked havoc in Victor's home, ruining both his name and his lively hood, they had practically marked them both for death over what had been done; witchery they had called it. Liam's only plan to help save his friend was to take him back here, hopefully to give them both a fresh start and a chance to have their happy ending.

The journey had showed Liam one thing however, that he wasn't satisfied with his life in the Navy, that he wanted his own ship, to do his own thing, Victor's tale of the price of ambition was an attempt to soothe Liam's ambitious mind, but it had had the opposite effect on him. He wanted to succeed; he wanted to thrive, to explore the world.

"I have some money saved, it can help you get your footing here, maybe you can become a healer Victor?" He pressed his friend. He shook his head.

"I'm not sure I can do it yet, go back to my old craft, my love, it's…its too soon." He murmured, pressing his head into Elizabeth's golden curls, she just smiled warmly.

"It'll be ok Vicky, We'll figure it out, we have each other and we have Liam here." She reasoned. "Where are we anyway?"

Liam looked around, going over to a man, asking over their location, claiming to have been travelers.

"Castle town." The older man said.

A grin crossed Liam's face. He returned to his group, just in time to see Elizabeth binding Victor's arm, him pulling her close to him with his good arm, kissing her over and over again as tears drip down his eyes as she straddles him and kissing him right back, words of declaration and love falling from their lips in between desperate kisses.

Liam clears his throat as he approaches, averting his eye.

It's bad form to watch after all.

"I need to go run and do something, I know where we are, here's some money, get yourself a room, I'll be back before morning." He told them, pressing a few pieces of gold into their hands.

"Don't you need a room as well?" Victor asked.

Liam laughed. "Don't worry about me mate. You're not the only one with a beloved." He winked. "Besides, if I wanted to get some shut eye, the last thing I'd want is to be anywhere near your room Frankenstein." He teased. "I suspect you'll be creating life the old fashioned way."

Elizabeth laughed as a bright pink settled on both her and her fiancee's faces.

xxx

 _Dear little brother_

 _How are you and father fairing? I hope you are getting my letters, I miss you dearly. You'll never believe the adventures I've been on, crossing realms defeating monsters. I almost died several times, but I made you a promise little brother, to be a survivor, to take you on your first sailing trip. And through hell or high water, that's exactly what I'll do._

 _After the adventures I've had, I'm actually pretty exhausted, I've decided to come home for a little while and finance a ship to be made with my savings, my own ship. It's to be the fastest ship in all the realms made of enchanted wood; it'll be able to go on all the adventures I wish under the kingdom's flag. I hope to see you when I arrive, waiting for me at dock just as you've always done._

 _You are always in my thoughts Killian._

 _Your elder brother,_

 _-Liam Jones_

 _xxx_

Liam was disappointed however, there was no dark haired boy at the dock, no glowing blue eyes swinging his wooden sword around, not tall man with those identical eyes dressed like the nobleman he was.

Neither his brother nor his father, were waiting for him.

Liam got a bad feeling in his chest.

"Relax Liam." Victor said, placing his arm on his shoulder, seeing the sailor's discomfort. "I'm sure your family is fine."

He gave a tight smile. "I'd feel better if I saw them for myself." He said simply, leading the pair to his childhood home.

The second he knocked on the door, all Liam's hopes fell.

A woman got the door along with an infant daughter at her side. "Can I help you?" She asked.

"My father and brother used to live here; can you tell me where they are residing now?" Liam knew that it was bad news before the woman spoke, this house had been in the Jones family for generations, and this woman, with her fair haired and dull eyed child, was _not_ a Jones.

He felt Elizabeth grip his hand, he was positively trembling. Images of his family dying alone infected his thoughts, images of his little brother never getting his letters, why hadn't he been more worried over the lack of contact? Killian used to always send him letters.

"I'm sorry sir, but the man who lived here was arrested 9 months ago, executed three months later, for treason." She said gently.

Liam's heart stopped.

"Tr-eason?" He stuttered, shaking his head. His father was nothing if not loyal. He would never betray the crown, never. There must have been another explanation, another reason.

But none of that mattered, his father was dead. None of that mattered to a dead man.

"And the boy?" He found himself asking in a stupor. "He's only 7, what happened to him?"

The woman looked up curiously.

"I don't recall what happened to the man's son, just that he wasn't here when my family moved in, however…" Liam looked at her desperately; he didn't care for his pride. He needed to know that Killian was safe, that he was alright, that he was being well looked after, surely the kingdom wouldn't punish a child for his father's crimes.

(Not that Liam believed his father did a bloody thing wrong!)

If his father was truly dead then Killian was the only family he had left, he had to be ok.

"There was a boy around that age hanging around the house, begging for scraps from me and some of the neighbors, my husband chased him away after a few weeks. We assumed he was some whore's bastard."

A strangled gasp left his lips, he couldn't help it. Killian had always been a stubborn but shy boy, so if he was forced to be begging for scraps, then things must be bad for him, for his little brother. He distantly remembered Victor leading him away as Elizabeth thanked the woman for her help.

A part of him wanted to take back his home, make the woman choke on her words. His brother was not a bastard, he was a Jones, he should be going to school, living with wealth and freedom, not on the streets like some urchin.

He hated the thoughts in his head, the hatred for this woman whose only crime was purchasing the home. It was darkness he knew, darkness he couldn't allow to win.

"Killian." He spoke softly. "I need to find him." Victor nodded, giving his body some much needed support. He felt like he was about to collapse.

"You helped my family, time to return the favor." He responded with ease, handing him some water, the healer in him must have realized the emotional strain he was under. "We'll find him."

xxx

After days of searching, Liam finally got a lead from one of the other local street children, a dark haired lass, who knew of his brother, she had tried to steal from them, but stopped when she realized he was in need of help.

"He hangs out in an abandoned warehouse by the water." She told him after Elizabeth had bribed the child with an apple. "He used to say he was waiting for his brother, we used to share food sometimes." She admitted. "I taught him how to steal." She said boldly. "but he stopped coming out about two weeks ago."

Liam felt like the walls were closing in on him. "Stopped coming out?" He repeated.

"He stopped hoping. He finally realized that no one was coming for him. He stopped trying to survive. He's probably dead." The girl said with a shrug, running off with her prize.

He shook his head. No. His little brother would never give up hope. He was too stubborn to die.

"Where's this boat shed?"

xxx

The three of them entered the warehouse, it was a large space, filled with places a little boy could hide, but he was here. Liam knew in the bottom of his heart. His brother was here, waiting for him.

"Killian! Killian lad, it's me Liam!" He shouted bounding in, turning over boxes and barrels, anywhere he would stay, anywhere a boy his age could hide.

Then he heard it, a tiny moan in the dark, "L-Liam."

He turned around sharply, following the sound of the voice. Elizabeth was the closest to it, pulling a sheet out from on top of a row boat.

"He's here!" She shouted, bending down. He raced over. "Victor, he's ill." Elizabeth added hastily.

He prayed that she was wrong, but knew she was right when he saw the form. He was thinner then what was healthy, pale and sweating. Eyes open slightly, landing on Elizabeth and Victor. He stirred in alarm, stumbling out of the boat, falling over himself to get away. His once pristine school clothes looked nearly unrecognizable

He felt another pang, another deep unsettling rage, his brother was on deaths door and no one seemed to care, everyone out there was none the wiser.

"I'm sorry- I just wanted somewhere warm to sleep I-" He slurred.

Liam went forward, stopping him from running off, catching him as he stumbled. "Killian, it's me, it's your big brother Liam." He barely moved, shivering, focusing on him.

"L-Liam?" The boy's weak voice stuttered, getting to his feet slowly, dusting off his pants as if that made much difference in his appearance. "Is that really you?"

He just nodded.

"Yes little brother." He replied, pulling him close. Killian was stiff at first before breaking down into violent sobs.

"Where were you brother? They said you were gone, that you were dead!" He shouted, pounding on his chest weakly. "I needed you and you weren't here, you left me…just like pa, just like mum, I was all alone."

He nodded, stroking his brother's dark hair. "I know little brother, I know. I'm so so sorry, I promise I'll never leave you again." He vowed.

"Younger brother." Killian corrected before growing still, the last of his fight draining out of him.

"Killian?" He gasped.

xxx

The next few days were a blur for Liam, Killian barely regained consciousness, only long enough to eat meager portions and drink bits of fluids before he returned to his uneasy sleep, his skin burned to the touch. Liam only left his side to get word of the ship he was having built, returning moments before the boy would wake up again.

When he had a few extra moments, Liam would escape down to the bar, drowning in rum for the first time ever. He never used to like spirits, always saw them as sinful. But his baby brother was dying, the bloody kingdom he served was killing him.

It was their fault. Their bloody faulty…

"Liam." Victor said suddenly, grabbing the bottle from his hand after he spent the better part of his day down there, drinking away his sorrows, what was the point? Killian would die, and he'd be all alone. "That's enough."

He looked at Victor uncertainly before pulling the bottle from his grip. "I'm the bloody son of a traitor." He spat at his friend. "Give me the bloody rum."

Victor should understand better than anyone, he needed this right now.

"Liam. This isn't you, don't let them take away your good form too." He begged. "Come on Liam, Killian is going to be fine." He insisted.

Liam took another swig. "Did you know our mother left days after Killian was born? She took one look at Killian and gave him to a neighbor for the night, running off with a pirate."

It stunned Victor.

"Father and I were staying in Castle town, he was one of the King's friends, but after hearing about Killian we moved back here to be here with him. I took him under my wing, swore I'd protect him. I swore to the kingdom to protect all the innocents. And how do they repay my services?" He asked with a dark laugh. "They kill my father, orphan my brother, leave him alone on the streets to die. How do I go on when everything I know is a lie? How do I face Killian, if he survives, with honor when I don't even believe in it myself anymore?"

Victor didn't have an answer. Liam dropped a few coins on the bar, taking the bottle with him as he went back to sit beside his brother.

xxx

He may not believe in honor anymore, but he sure as hell believed in his family, he had to believe Killian would survive.

His little brother was a survivor.

xxx

The ship was complete; all Liam needed was a name.

His first thoughts were out of love, the Jewel of the Realm.

xxx

It was the eighth day when Killian's fever broke and he was able to eat solid foods, small portions, but Victor said this was a good sign.

"I saw it Liam." Killian stuttered once he was full, clinging to Liam like a life line. "We were on our way home from the market, but the royal guards were hurting someone, a woman, he stepped in and stopped it." He explained. "The next day, more of them stormed our home, they took father and they would have killed me, but I was hiding Liam, you know how good I am at playing hide and seek. They would have killed me." He said near tears. It took Liam all his strength not to wrap his brother up I his arms and try and take the pain away. "I tried to get help, but they later told me and the others in town that he allied himself with Queen Snow of Misthavem, no one would help me after that. No one took me in, I didn't know where to go or what to do."

That was impossible, his father detested Misthaven and all that they stood for. It was rumored that their only child was a young sorceress, his father hated magic.

"Father said that the King and Queen's advisors were trash, they were leading them astray and would lead the princesses astray as well." He added. "He believed that they were responsible for the poverty, taking gold from the people right under their noses, father didn't know I knew but I did." Killian insisted. "I think they had father killed.

They had betrayed his father, nearly killed his beloved brother.

This fact enraged him, he knew for certain that he couldn't sail under Arendelle's colors now, not after everything they did, almost destroying his family.

"Killian, once Victor says you are totally recovered, how would you like to join me?" The boy blinked.

"Join you?" He repeated.

"I boat us a ship, you can be my loyal cabin boy, how does that sound?"

A wide grin appeared on his face. "Yes Liam! Yes!" He said excitedly, trying to get to his feet but lost his balance quickly. It made Elizabeth get up and scold the boy, getting him back to bed.

Liam just laughed, kissing his forehead before Killian returned to sleep.

"Thank you for saving my brother." He told his friends, "For returning to the field that nearly ruined you for me." Victor nodded.

"The least I could do, you probably would have found him sooner if you had not helped me. I'm still in debt to you."

xxx

Liam left them to themselves, as he had one final act of business to deal with. He finally knew the name of his ship.

He couldn't serve Arendelle a moment longer, not when there were people set to betray their own to further their own power, not when they had nearly killed his brother. He needed to live by his own rules, his own code. He wanted vengeance for the pain they had caused him, the fact that he bloody kept going to the bar, drinking far too much rum then was proper.

The fact that the last time he had gotten so inebriated, he had nearly taken a bar wench to bed, a wench with icey blond hair and blue eyes. It made him sick with guilt.

xxx

He realized something.

The only people who had showed him any sort of loyalty were a pair of runaways in their pursuit of knowledge.

The only person who had helped his little brother was a young orphan thief.

Apparently there were more honors amongst thieves then he had originally thought.

xxx

"Finally come up with a name have you?" The dock worker asked paper out, ready to write it down. Liam knew that he couldn't name his ship out of love, no, the kingdom wouldn't take that from him too.

Liam nodded, the name in the front of his thoughts.

"The Jolly Roger."

* * *

I figured everyone needs a fall from grace story. And since I made Liam a pirate like canon Killian, I needed a reason. This is it.

I've just become aware how Killian centric these are. Promise, the next set won't be so Killian heavy.

(But during this Hiatus, can you blame me?)

This is actually my favorite shot I've written or this, so far. It has lots of aspects of Frankenstein, along with the head canon I had when I originally put Victor in Freeing the Witch.

(As well as my own private Easter eggs)

Anyway, Done with the sequel. Working on the Epilogue.

Guest Reviews~

andria: I'm glad you liked it, I like CS much better as well. Thank you for your wonderful reviews, I appreciate them.

I'll probably post the sequel in about a week, at the same time as I update this next.

Next time: _The Fairest of Them All_

 _~Luna_


	5. The Fairest of Them All

Fairest of Them All 

She met them when she was just 6 years old, her mother brought her to meet them, a timid scared little girl. It had been her first trip outside the castle, her first trip and Mother wanted her to be on her best behavior. She knew that her mother wouldn't hesitate to punish her if she stepped out of line, so she didn't.

She was a good princess.

"Relax little one." One of the other children said, a fourteen year old girl with red hair, she smiled kindly. She just gave her own weak smile back. She remembered liking the girl's green dress. "How about I introduce you to the other children?" The girl asked. "While the grownups talk, the rest of us usually play in the garden." She smiled and nodded.

Mother had said to make herself look good in front of the other noble children, the males especially.

 _You'll be marrying one of them._ Her mother had advised. _Men don't like foolish girls, they don't care about your heart, they care about your beauty. You are the fairest of them all, make sure they remember that._

"My name is Zelena, this is my younger sister Regina." The red headed princess introduced leading her over to where a dark haired girl stood awkwardly. She was fidgeting on her feet in her dark purple dress. She could see the girl eyeing one of the servants that was around their age with a blush on her face. It made her smile.

 _She's pretty, but she's not interested in the other royals._ She thought gratefully. _I won't have to compete with her._

"Most of the other children here are a little old for you, but there's one about your age, he's shy too, maybe you'll hit it off and become good friends?" She said happily, leading her over to a boy with dirty blonde hair.

"This is Prince James." She introduced. The boy looked at her and smiled.

"You're pretty!" He exclaimed before blushing.

She grinned, moving her hand through her long dark hair, just like mother told her to, introducing herself. "My name's Snow."

XXX

At sixteen, Snow knew what she wanted, problem was, other people didn't understand.

"Prince James's father is a coward." Her mother scowled when Snow inquired about a marriage to the young prince. "Don't get your hopes up child, he's already engaged to Princess Katherine, been that way since they could walk."

Snow knew that, James often spoke of her in passing, between stolen kisses in the stables, between shared ambitions in the library, between planning and plotting in the bedroom.

They wanted to be King and Queen side by side, they would rule everything and everyone. They would correct the mistakes of their parents, they would rule with an iron fist, not let any of the neighboring regions bully them around, they would be the most powerful pair in all the realm. It was perfect.

If Katherine wasn't in the picture of course.

But as her mother always said, Snow was the fairest of them all, she could get anything she wanted. All she had to do was flash an innocent smile, pretend to be ditz for a bit. People saw her as the beautiful princess, not what she was.

A porcelain weapon with a blackened heart

"I can get rid of her." James said in a whisper, green eyes boring into her as his body pressed her against a wall, as his hands ventured under her skirt to in places that a princess should not be touched. She loved every minute of it. "Just tell me what to do so we can be together." He breathed against her neck.

She sighed in his embrace, begging for things that a young lady shouldn't want until marriage. She knew what she wanted, she knew what stood in her way, and now she knew how she was going to get it.

"Soon my prince." She murmured into his ear. "Let me figure it out first, and then we can have it all." Through all their plotting, Snow was the brains of the pair, she'd figure it out and her love would carry it out. He was more of a fighter anyway.

Snow White was the fairest maiden in all the land, if she didn't get her happy ending than who would?

XXX

"Where was it again?" She asked with an innocent smile to a palace guard, she stood a bit too closely, making the young man blush. "The palace where Katherine goes to paint all by her lonesome?"

Snow placed her dainty hand on the man's shoulder, running it down in one smooth motion. He was drinking wine off duty, a perfect place to get some secretive secrets from him.

"N-Near the East River, a two day ride from here." He admitted. "Princess, are you sure this is prop-" Snow placed her hand on the man's face.

"Shh." She said softly, "I just want to visit my dear friend, is that so bad?" She giggled, pulling away and practically skipping out of the tavern.

But Snow waited, heard his distant voice.

 _"Hmm…Did this wine always taste like Apples-"_

CRASH. His body hit the floor.

Snow smiled.

XXX

He was on his way. James was on his way to kill Katherine, pin it on burglars or a rogue assassin. Then he could be free, he could be free to marry her. Everything Snow wanted would be in their grasp.

"Why are you so happy?" Her friend teased, interrupting her thoughts suddenly, her glass of tea in her hand. "I mean, I'm engaged, so I have reason to be happy, you've been moping for weeks, what has you so happy?"

Snow looked up at her friend, her only friend, one Princess Regina. Once Snow realized that Regina had fallen hard for a local servant, and would never have to compete with Snow, she began forming a friendship with the girl, she liked how trusting and happy the brunette was. She was content with a commoner's life, a life of horseback riding and dirt and grim, she had no interest in being a royal, a ruler.

Zelena was the one her parents were grooming for that role anyway in the event of Snow's death.

Snow smiled widely. "Maybe you're not the only one who's happy ending is approaching." She said cryptically. "Maybe I'll beat you to the alter after all."

Regina's face scrunched in confusion. "I thought you loved James?" She asked. "He's engaged to Katherine, you know that neither kingdom is going to let them out of that alliance. Unless you've gotten over him?"

Snow shook her head, sipping her tea to hide her smirk.

"Let's just say that Katherine isn't going to be a problem anymore. She won't be fit to marry anyone." She sneered.

 _Hard to marry someone if you were dead._

Snow saw realization flash across Regina's face, but Snow was confident her friend wouldn't betray her trust.

They were best friends after all.

XXX

She waited for word back, waited for James to come back, to tell her the deed was done, scoop her up in his arms and make promises that he'd get his father to agree to have them wed.

James didn't come. He was late. It bothered Snow. She had planned it out perfectly, and he was late, there was no reason for him to be late unless he deviated from the plan, unless something went wrong.

The door opened. Snow turned, a smile on her face that quickly dropped. It was not James who entered but Ava, her mother.

"James was arrested today." Her mother said suddenly, "He tried to kill his fiancée." Snow froze. "Do you know anything about that?" It was obvious that her mother knew for a fact that she did. The woman smiled, pleased.

"See what happens when you listen to me? You got a man to do anything you wanted after I helped you and made you the fairest of them all." Her mother gloated. "Unfortunately, you chose the wrong man, couldn't keep his mouth shut, told some stable hand, who told the king. Your prince will be dead at dawn." She said casually, like she was discussing plans for her next gown.

 _A stable hand?_

 _No._

"Who?" She growled before biting her tongue at her mother's cruel gaze for speaking with that tone. Snow cleared her throat. "Please mother, its important, who did James tell?"

"I believe the boy's name is Daniel, engaged to your friend correct?" Her mother said. She knew very well James hadn't told a soul. Her mother knew that it had been her error which had done it.

Regina had told her fiancee who had told the king, and now James would die. Her true love dead, all because _Regina_ couldn't keep a secret.

Snow walked away, towards her bedroom to look in the mirror. She saw her pale while skin, her blood red lips and her raven dark hair. She was the most beautiful creature in the entire realm, but beauty could not save her prince.

But what Snow could do, what she would do, was to tear out Regina's heart and crush it in her palm. No matter what she had to do, no matter who she had to step to do it. Snow was confident that she could do it.

She, after all, was the fairest of them all.

* * *

A bit of the origin of Evil Snow and Bandit Regina's feud.

I remember in Freeing the Witch I got this weird review outraged that I changed Emma's paternity. I never did. This is proof. It's still David. Like the Shepard David. I find myself constantly wondering about where I gave that impression. I have a plan. No decision is of mine is made just because i feel like it. One thing I love about Once show is that there are no coincidences. I try to embrace that as much as possible.

Guest Reviews:

 _ **andria**_ : I'm glad you liked the back story, its been spinning in my mind for a while now. Glad it went over well.

I'm posting the first chapter of The Purple Fairy some time tonight. So keep a look out.

~Luna

Next: _Run_


	6. Run

This point on contains one shots that take place from Purple Fairy onward, it is strongly suggested that you read The Purple Fairy before proceeding in case of spoilers or general confusion.

* * *

Run 

It all started with an almost first kiss. She kissed him on the cheek, handing him the loaf of bread his mother had sent him after. He went to pick it up late in the day like always.

(After he poached a couple apples from the other stands, his mother always did like apples...)

Her actions turned his cheeks red as he returned home. He tried to make up an excuse why he was blushing, about how one of the ladies had called him a hero and ruffled his hair in front of every one.

(Because Henry was no Hero, he was a thief and a damn good one)

But once Henry mentioned getting the bread, seeing the baker's daughter, his cheeks started getting red again. His mother was no fool, she was able to piece it together right away.

It was what started Mom's teasing, words like young love, and first kiss thrown about, making Henry pout with embarrassment as he tried to deny her claims.

He was fourteen years old, practically all grown, and just really wanted out of this conversation right now. He didn't believe in true love, despite it being the origin of his mother's light magic. Henry didn't need any of that. Henry thought the conversation would drop if he ignored it.

But then Mom just had to tell Grandma.

Then she started teasing him too. She kept smiling and telling him to embrace love, not to be like Emma. In all honesty, Henry didn't even like the girl. She'd totally blind-sided him, but he didn't expect her actions to cause this.

They started saying how this girl like liked him, how he should be nicer to her, how he should be a gentleman. It was when they started dabbling with the idea of talking with her parents, inviting her over, that Henry snapped back at them.

"I don't like her!" He exclaimed. "She's just a stupid girl!" His mother scowled at him.

"Henry, that's not how we talk about other people." She scowled. "And give her a chance maybe-"

He folded his arms dismissively. "Where's Emma? When is she coming back?" He asked her curtly, seeing the way her smile faded. He was suddenly furious, easily striking out blindly with his words. "When's my _real_ mother coming back?" He snapped. His mother's expression filled with hurt and his grandmother gasped.

"Henry!" she demanded. "Apologize to _your mother_ right now!" She demanded.

He refused, hands clenched. She shouldn't have badgered him about this. He didn't like girls, she just didn't understand. There wasn't a point. Love wasn't real. Love didn't exist. He was better off alone, everyone was better off alone.

What was the point of any of it? Grandma was sad without his grandfather who he never met. His mother never even fell in love, saying that he was enough, but Henry knew. She wished for more.

But Emma taught him the biggest of it all. She'd been hurt so badly by his father that she'd thought she had to give him up. It hurt after he found out, especially when Emma lost Graham. She'd been so depressed, staying away for months out of fear and pain.

No, Henry didn't need this, he didn't believe that love could be anything other than weakness.

"It's ok." His mother said softly, trying to mask the hurt in her eyes. Henry immediately felt a surge of guilt. He realized that he'd gone too far, that he shouldn't have said that. It was just so hard sometimes, not belonging.

He wasn't like them, magical, and he wasn't like the villagers, he wasn't normal. He was Henry. He was different. He would always be different.

"Mom. I-"

He was interrupted by a gasp from his grandmother, she straightened up, gripping the table staring at the window of the cabin.

"Mom what's wrong?" Henry's mother asked.

"The spell, the one hiding us, it's been broken." She explained with a bit of worry in her voice. Henry and his mother looked at her wide eyed. It was impossible, it was a mixture of the most powerful dark magic and blood magic. Nothing could beat it.

"Your sister, darling, she's here." His grandmother explained. "It's the only possibility." Henry looked out the window seeing the green grass catch fire as something in the distance approached. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. Dread, pure dread.

"Sweetie, take Henry and go." His grandmother ordered.

"Mom-" She tried desperately. "What about you?" Henry nodded, he knew what she wanted them to do and Henry refused to do that, he wouldn't let his grandmother sacrifice herself for them, they could stay, and they could fight!

"Go!" She roared, eyes flashing with magic. "Take Henry and go!" She demanded.

"Grandma!" He pleaded. The woman smiled softly to him, reaching onto one of her shelves of trinkets, placing a golden compass in his hands.

"Henry, listen to me. I want you to run, get as far away from here with your mother as possible, but if something happens, you're going to need this compass." She explained.

"I don't understand." He whimpered in fear, seeing the approaching threats.

"That is an enchanted compass, it will lead you towards fate." She explained vaguely.

"Fate? I don't understand." He repeated. Henry would be frustrated if he wasn't so scared.

"Fate is a wondrous thing Henry, but sometimes it needs a little push, that compass will push fate and it'll help keep you safe, don't lose it." She told him. "I love you Henry."

Henry nodded boldly, turning to his mother, watching her embrace the older woman, holding back tears.

"Show them how this family defends itself." His mother told her mother with an encouraging voice despite her teary smile. "I love you." His grandmother nodded.

"I love you too my little flower." She said softly, pushing them both out the door. "Now run! She yelled. "Run!"

Henry took his mother's hand and they bolted out the back door. They could hear the echoes of magic blasts and the sound of burning wood. Their home was burning.

"Don't look back Henry." She said, looking forward. "Come on we'll figure it out." She insisted.

"I wouldn't count on that dearie." Sneered a voice, appearing in front of them like magic. Henry was pushed behind his mother.

"We don't' want trouble." She said boldly. "We mean no harm."

The man approached. "I'm sorry. I don't believe you." The man said sadly. "Is that your boy?" She didn't respond. "He reminds me of my boy, if you come without trouble, I promise your son will be well looked after. I-" He said reaching out. His mother growled, magic flashing in her hand. Her eyes glowing green.

"You're not touching my son." She growled, lashing out. Henry expected the knight to fall, to be hit by his mother's light magic and fall down. Except that didn't happen, he raised his hand and the light magic was absorbed into him. Henry had never seen someone do that, not even his other mother.

"Sorry dearie, you're not the only one with powerful magic." He snickered drawing his sword. It was solid gold. Henry noticed a feral look in his mom's eye as she rushed forward, armed with magic, surprising him, but not stopping him. She grabbed the sword with her bare hand, crying out.

"Run Henry! Run!" She screamed.

"Mom!" Henry tried. But the knight ripped his sword away and hit her in the leg, she screamed out, clutching the gaping wound.

His mother's blood spilt everywhere.

"Run Henry. Run." She pleaded.

He nodded, turning and bolting. He was just edging the clearing, he didn't know if they were still following, he didn't know what they wanted or-

Henry looked down, the compass still clutched in his hand, it's reflective surface showing his own tear streaked face. "I'll find you mom. Grandma."

 _Mom._ Henry knew what he had to do. He had to find Mom, his birth mother, Emma. Even if that knight had light magic, there was no way it would be greater than the Dark One's Dark Magic.

The compass must have agreed because the needle shifted suddenly. He followed it. He ran and ran because that was what everyone wanted him to do. Run.

Henry was lucky though, lucky that his mother's temporary companion, Graham, was a hunter, taught him a few tricks for hunting and eating the native plants. It took days to reach where he was heading.

He finally stopped at a seaside village, the village a twitching compass needle had led him towards. He was gasping and hungry, starving actually but he couldn't stop; he had to keep going see where destiny was leading him.

Not that Henry exactly knew much about what that destiny actually meant, but his grandmother had told him to follow and she was the smartest person he knew.

The needle stilled. It finally stilled. He looked up, noticing exactly what it was pointing him towards. It was pointing to a deckhand.

* * *

Just a little prequel to what happened with Henry. I wrote some of these as I was writing the Purple Fairy, originally planning to post them along side the actual chapters, but decided against it, but I decided to keep the vague descriptions anyway. I felt it made things a little more interesting.

~Luna


	7. The Fallen Queen

WARNING: Mentions of miscarriage, and character deaths.

* * *

 **The Fallen Queen**

When Regina was a little girl, she learned two inevitable truths.

Her family loved her and she was going to marry Daniel.

She'd met him when his father, the stable hand, had to bring him with him as his wife had recently passed. The man had been really nervous about the whole thing. Regina's mother didn't care.

"We're always welcome to company right girls?" Mother had asked.

"Or course!" Zelena had insisted, introducing herself to the boy. Regina had decided it was better to hid behind her mother's leg.

"I'm not going to bite you." Daniel had stated plainly. "My name is Daniel, I love horses."

Regina remembered he had brown eyes, just like her. She really liked his eyes.

"I like horses too." She said softly, coming out.

"Come on Gina, don't be shy." Her sister teased. Regina turned on her heel sticking her tongue out at her older sister.

"It's Re-Gina!" She exclaimed. "Regina!"

Her mother snickered under her breath.

"I think you have a pretty name." Daniel said, blushing as soon as he saw her out from behind her mother, all dark hair in a braid and her pale purple dress.

The boy might have well had said I do, because at that moment, Regina was sure that she loved the son of the stable hand.

XXX

When she was barely 18, she was given a terrible choice. Her best friend was planning on assassinating Katheryn Abigail Midas. It was already in the works. If she didn't do something, she would die. Regina didn't know the girl, just recalling that she was Zelena's friend.

But it didn't matter who she was, Regina couldn't stand around, knowing what she knew. She couldn't let an innocent woman die.

But if Regina told someone, Snow would know. Snow didn't handle betrayal well. She was kind of scary; there were rumors that her mother knew magic.

 _How else could a miller's daughter marry a king?_

Daniel had seen how upset she was, as her fiancée, he swore he wanted to help. So she told him. And he told Midas's guards.

"They'll sweep it under the rug." He assured her. "It's royalty, it's what they do."

She'd never cried so much when she heard what would actually happen after it got out what James had tried to do.

Prince James was hanged. Regina saw it, tucked between her elder sister and Daniel, but try as they might, they couldn't protect her from the glare she felt from Snow.

"You're going to pay Regina." She told her when she passed. "You ruined my life, and now you will pay." Regina flinched backwards and Zelena stepped in front of her. She placed a smile on her face.

"Princess, I don't know what kind of high horse you live on but if you're psycho family comes near my sister, it will be _you_ who will pay." She said sweetly.

Regina didn't understand how Zelena could do that, threaten in such a sweet voice.

They took her home immediately, Regina never returned to court. Her mother and Zelena were the only ones who went now, she just stayed home with her father and Daniel.

"You did the right thing, never forget that sweet heart." He insisted, petting her hair as she sobbed. "He died because he let greed control him. You have a strong heart Regina, the most resilient heart. Everything will be ok."

And for a little while, Regina believed him.

XXX

It was the eve of her wedding, nearly fifteen years later. She'd wanted to wait for her sister, it wasn't right for the youngest daughter to marry before her elder sister. But now she could wait no longer. In a few months' time, Regina wouldn't fit in her mother's wedding dress.

She was glowing with happiness, practicing dancing with her father, Zelena was going over with her mother the final details.

"I'm proud of you Gina." She'd teased, bumping into her as she passed with options for the bouquet. "Don't worry about me sister dear. You know me, resilient as always." Regina was pretty sure her sister had no intentions of marrying, but she'd not dare tell that to their mother.

Regina was so happy.

But then _she_ appeared. Regina spotted her first, a mere child all golden blonde hair and deep green eyes. She watched them briefly, Regina swore she was watching them curiously.

"Can I help you?" The girl looked at her with sad eyes.

"No." She said simply, flicking her wrist, and Regina fell to the ground. Their own personal guards tried to intervene, but the girl blew past them too. She released a plume of fire and before Reign knew it, her home was consumed by flames.

Her father helped her up, coughing all the way.

"You need to run Regina, do you understand?"

She didn't.

"That's the Dark One, Queen Snow's daughter." He explained. "She wants to kill you, do you understand? You must run!" He insisted.

She ran. She ran from her burning home, ran and ran, looking around for the stables. She needed to find Daniel. They needed to run.

"Regina, I'm so glad you could make it!" Exclaimed a familiar voice.

Regina gasped as she entered the stables, all their horses were gone. A man was holding Daniel by the throat pinning him to the wall, but most importantly, Queen Snow was standing there dressed in dark silk, practically glowing in dark energy.

 _Magic._

"Let him go. I'm the one you want." She insisted.

Snow laughed.

"Please darling, if I wanted you dead, I would have killed you, no no, I promised you I'd make you pay didn't I?" She removed an apple from her pocket. "Do you know what this is?"

Regina stared at it, it was perfectly shaped, color bright and ruby like, ever the leaf looked unblemished. Regina knew a thing or two about apples, and that apple was too perfect.

"It has a bit of an extra ingredient, a curse developed by a fairy to try to travel through realms but instead she accidentally made a curse to cause one to sleep for eternity." Snow explained. "There is no cure except for- what was that Huntsman?"

The man turned and looked at her, Regina saw his face. She gasped.

"James how-"

Snow's mock happiness fell a fraction.

"This is David, James's secret twin brother. Say hello David." She said patting the man's hair.

"Hello." The man said. "I hear you killed my brother."

Regina didn't know what to say, she couldn't see a way out of this.

"Now the cure is True Love's kiss." David said simply, looking back at Daniel. "The rarest and most powerful magic of all."

Regina really didn't like this.

"Now Regina, I'm not here to kill you, I'm here to offer you a choice. Prove to me that your love is pure and I'll leave you two alone." Snow stated, moving the apple towards her. "Take a little bite."

Regina moved to do it, she had the apple in her hand when it was snatched back.

"No, actually, I think _he_ should take a bite." She taunted. "I wouldn't want to lose the opportunity to get my revenge if your love isn't all that's cracked up to be." She laughed.

"No!" Regina shouted. "Don't you dare." Whatever was going to happen, she wanted it to happen to her, Snow wanted her to suffer, it was her fault that this had happened, that her family was probably dead by the hands of that demon child. No one else was going to be hurt because of her.

"I'll do it!" She insisted. "I'll eat the apple."

Snow just smirked. Daniel took the apple as David released him. He looked up at her, the same brown eyes she fell in love with staring back at her. He gave her a small smile.

"I love you." He said breathlessly. "Whatever happens, always know that, always know that I love you." And then he took a bite, and then he fell.

Regina remembered screaming , she remembered rushing past Snow, holding her love's head in her lap, trying to get him to wake up.

"To think mother always thought you were so smart." Snow sneered. "Weren't you listening, the only thing that's going to wake him is True Love's Kiss, so pucker up."

Regina looked down at him, at Daniel's too pale skin and too red lips, and then she kissed him. Regina had kissed him dozens of times but this time, he didn't respond to her, he didn't smile into her kiss, he didn't bite softly at her bottom lip, he didn't even breath.

She pulled away and there was nothing, no light show, no sharp intake of breath, there was nothing.

Daniel wasn't going to wake up.

Snow was still laughing. Regina turned to her, not caring that there were tears running down her face, not caring that she was shaking with her agony.

"Wake him up!" she shouted. "Wake him up!"

Snow moved slowly towards her, kneeling down to look at her. "Looks like your love isn't strong enough. I never got the chance to see if my love for James was true, count yourself lucky, you wouldn't begin to understand the agony of losing your soul mate."

She stood back up. "You should probably be thanking me." She snickered, flicking her wrist and she, and David were gone, leaving Regina to the ruins of her home, of her life.

XXX

Regina didn't want to leave Daniel there all by himself, but she was starting to get hungry and thirsty. So she stoned herself and entered her home, stepping through the singed rubble, praying that maybe they had survived that maybe-

The first thing that she saw was her father's body. It made her ill, she didn't know what to do. Snow had left her alive to suffer through this grief, but it was only a matter of time before she came for her.

 _I can't even bury Daddy._

She then entered her mother's room. She took one look and closed the door. This time she was actually ill. Regina wasn't too sure if it was the sight of her dead parents, of having Daniel enter an immortal sleep and her love for him not being strong enough to wake him or if it was just her baby.

 _Her baby._

She had to be strong for her unborn child, she had to get what she could and run. Regina stopped in front of her sister's room. She rested her hand on the oak door with her name carved in green, her favorite color.

She just couldn't do it, it would devastate her.

So she ran.

Except the problem was that Regina didn't exactly know how to do that, she didn't know how to hunt or fight, and by the time that the sun set, she was really hungry. Her stomach just kept growling, her dress was ripped and torn and Regina felt entirely broken.

 _Which is just what she wanted._ Regina realized bitterly.

Just to top off her misery, it started to rain, drenching her quickly and completely. She eventually lowered herself, trying to cower beneath a branch to lessen the downpour over her.

She held her eyes tightly shut refusing to cry, refusing to allow her to be the one to make her cry.

 _But she really wanted to cry._

She didn't know at what point she fell asleep, just that she woke up shivering in the dirt, with something wet on her face.

Correction: something was _licking_ her face.

Regina shot up from her spot, shoving it away. It took a moment before she looked at the creature. It was a black wolf, it hadn't reacted by her outburst, simply taking a step back, cocking his head as she moved. It was just watching her.

"Just great. I'm going to be eaten by wolves." She reasoned, dropping her face into her hands. "Might as well, I'm going to die out here." She nearly sobbed. Regina just really didn't want to cry.

"Don't worry; you're not going to die." Said a voice. Regina snapped to look at the wolf, fearing she was going crazy, because judging by the way it looked at her...she thought the wolf was _talking_ to her.

"And he's not going to eat you. Are you bud?" Regina looked up at a very real human voice answering her. He appeared from the woods, sword at his hip dressed in village clothes, smiling smugly. "Now, how did a very beautiful woman wind up in such a state out here?" He asked, offering his hand to her. She took it, not like she had a choice.

"I was driven out. Please, I need help." The man's smug look faded, he simply looked at her and nodding.

"Of course, come on, my cabin is only a short walk from here." He responded.

Mother always told her to be warry of gentleman offering to help a woman in distress; she said that there were 5 men with bad intentions for every gentleman in existence. Regina just hoped that for once, the odds were on her side.

"The name's Keith, by the way, Keith of Nottingham."

XXXXX

He was a kind man…at times. Occasionally, Keith would exhibit a temper, but not one towards her, never towards her. Slowly, he became her friend but nothing more. In the weeks that followed their meeting, he invited her into his home, extended his house to give her a separate room. He taught her how to shoot a bow and arrow, helped her haul in her first catch.

She appreciated that kindness, especially when she began to show signs of her pregnancy that even he noticed.

So she told him, about the Queen, about Daniel, about her child. He was sympathetic of course, offering her a shoulder to cry on, but she couldn't. She refused to cry.

Regina had no idea why.

He offered to wed her that next morning, but she refused. Out here in the woods, her reputation didn't matter. She wanted her child to know Daniel, not to think this man was him, was their father. Keith understood that, respected it even. He spoke of having a family once, a woman he fell for, but she'd fallen for another. It was the reason why he had isolated himself. Heartbreak was a curious thing.

For a moment, Regina thought she'd be ok. She thought she found someone to help her, to depend on, to be there for when her child was born, so they would have someone if she passed. Child birth was dangerous in the best occasions.

But things for Regina were never easy.

It was a little over two months since her family had died, but this morning, Regina woke up to blood. She was bleeding. She thought nothing of it at first, because fate wouldn't choose to take the only thing she had left, surely they weren't that cruel. Her baby was safe, her baby would be just fine.

Before long, it started to hurt, her lower back ached so badly she could barely move and there was so much blood. It was early in the morning and Keith was out checking the traps. She was all alone.

"Please Daniel." She begged. "Please don't let me lose the last piece of you I have left."

Regina woke up in an elderly woman's home after having fallen unconscious from the blood loss. She was frantic, looking around, studying faces to get some understanding as to what had happened.

"I'm so sorry." The woman said, it was all she needed to say. Regina could not hold onto her denial.

It was then that Regina broke down and cried. When she realized that she had indeed lost everything, she cried. She cried until Keith returned with flowers and some food.

Food. Like that was going to give her back what she had lost, like it was enough to make up for the loss of her parents, her sister, her love, and now her child. Like it was going to help her forget that all of it was her fault, she'd told the secret, she'd gotten Snow's man killed and so Regina's entire family paid the price. It wasn't fair.

When she said such to the man, he revealed another item he'd procured. A bottle of whiskey and a sorry smile.

She had her first drink that night.

* * *

This is just part 1 of Regina's backstory, which is pretty dark. I feel like any Regina backstory had to be pretty sad. But it will get better,

Guest Review:

andria: I'm glad you liked it!

~Luna


	8. A Bandit's Rise

A Bandit's Rise

Regin drowned in her sorrow for months. She crawled into the bottom of the bottle and wanted to stay there. There was no point in getting up, in eating in anything. She wanted to disappear.

However, months after the loss of her child, Keith did something strange.

For months he'd been at her side, his shoulder to cry on, her confidant, her caretaker. He'd been everything to her. He was her only friend. But she was still grieving, she could barely function.

So Regina was utterly shocked when he kissed her. She pushed him away, outraged at his audacity.

Regina's beloved had been cursed to sleep forever. She loved him more than she ever thought she could love anyone, and yet it could not save them, it couldn't even save her child. If her love with Daniel was not 'True', there was no way Regina could anyone ever love again. She could barely feel anything anymore. She was broken and shattered and constantly waiting for the next shoe to drop, waiting for something to add to her misery.

Keith raised his hands to defend himself from her rage.

"I know you don't love me. Honestly, I don't think you even like me," he admitted.

"Then why the hell would you kiss me?" she snapped.

"Because you need _something_ ," he said. "Or you'll waste away here."

She shrugged off his concerns. What did he know about her and her feelings? What did he know about loss?

"I don't need anything," she snapped.

He raised a brow arrogantly. She literally wanted to shoot him with an arrow for it.

"You're not ok," he insisted.

"Did I say I was?" she countered. "Because I'm not. I lost everyone. They're all dead –

my parents, my sister, my love and my baby – my only chance at ever having a family."

He shook his head. "Not your only chance." Was he really implying that _he_ could replace Daniel? How _dare_ he. "That's not what I meant. I just thought I - never mind," he said, shaking his head. "It was stupid."

She whole-heartedly agreed with that.

Regina couldn't get his words out of her head. Of course she wasn't ok. She felt like nothing. She barely ever wanted to get out of bed. She barely felt human.

Keith had been nothing but kind to her. He'd taught her to fend for herself, offered her his home, and now he was trying to help her heal. Regina appreciated his efforts, but she couldn't quite figure out what he had been thinking.

"Why did you kiss me?" she asked suddenly over dinner nearly a week since his ill-advised kiss.

Caught by surprise, he eventually found his words. "Because I thought it could help you forget," he admitted. "You're beautiful Regina. I just want to help you in any way I can, give you the…comfort you deserve. I'm not Daniel, but I care about you."

She knew the kind of relationship she was offering. Zelena used to talk about such arrangements, even participating in them on occasion. "To scratch an itch," she'd said. Zelena never cared about waiting until the sanctity of marriage. She'd even told Regina in confidence that she honestly never intended to get married. Their mother would have been so disappointed if she'd known. Cora always had a soft spot for her elder daughter. Cora always hoped she'd get to plan a beautiful wedding for her eldest daughter, have her marry a perfect guy that would love her like she loved her husband. The thought of Cora learning of Zelena's transgressions would have killed her.

Regina wasn't like that. She'd had Daniel. They'd only just started…acting on their feelings, on their everlasting commitment to each other. Regina thought Zelena was going to get married at one point. They were so close. She'd thought Zelena was going to have a Spring wedding and she a summer one. It was a beautiful fantasy, but it had fallen through at the last minute.

"I love Daniel," she responded. "That won't ever change."

"I suspect nothing less. I know you, Regina, at least a bit. We're the same, you and I. We…there's only space to love one person," he stated. "But it doesn't mean we have to be miserable and all alone. We're both adults. I just wanted to put this…out there."

Regina just didn't have the energy to talk about this anymore. The very conversation felt like a betrayal to Daniel. She loved him with every bit of herself. How could she try to move on with Keith, even in just the physical sense?

"I'm tired," she said suddenly, leaving the room without another word. She could hear Keith cleaning up as she laid in bed, using the alcohol he brought her to help lull herself to sleep.

She didn't talk about his offer the next morning, and he didn't push her. They went into town to pick up supplies – Keith food, Regina another bottle of whatever the tavern had in stock.

"Excuse me," said a small voice. Regina searched for the voice, annoyed at whoever was prolonging her trip. She hated talking to people lately.

"Missus?" Something pulled on her pant leg. She looked down to see a small child looking up at her. "I can't find my Papa."

Regina's anger faded the second she saw the little girl's big brown eyes. Her skin was pale, but her bright blue sundress was clean. Regina took the little girl's hand. "Where did you last see your Papa?" she asked. The girl led her over to the market, babbling about the trips her father often takes.

It was nice, being given a tour by this sweet little girl.

"What's your name, sweet pea?" she asked, a strange feeling settled in her chest. She wondered what would happen if they never found her father. She would have no one and so Regina would have to step in. They could set up that spare room for her, the one Keith had once offered for her child's nursery.

It was irrational, she knew, but it made her feel alive for the first time since she lost her child.

"Papa!" the girl cried out as a man appeared. He looked frantic, searching the crowds.

"Grace!" the man called, suddenly seeing her. Regina could see his relief as the girl released Regina's hand and ran at full speed into her father's arms. The man pulled her up in a hug that reminded Regina of the way her own father held her.

It was obvious just how loved 'Grace' was. Regina waved goodbye to the small family, feeling happy for once. She felt sure, like she had a plan in the first time since before the death of her family. She didn't even see the need to buy alcohol today.

She realized that Keith was right. She did need something.

She met up with Keith as he finished his errands with a spring in her step. He raised a brow. "You seem happy.

She smiled. "I know what I want," she replied, because it was the truth. She had found a way to hold onto hope, to keep from feeling so numb. She sprang it on Keith with no preamble. "I want a baby."

He was shocked. She didn't blame him. The baby wouldn't be Daniel's, but it would be hers. Her child could have her brown eyes or her father's green, maybe Zelena's freckles that their mother always said skipped a generation. She didn't want to be without love but she had lost all of her loved ones. She wanted a baby who would love her.

Her child would be loved like no child had ever been loved before.

"With me?" Keith asked again. She nodded. Her child would need a father after all, and Keith could teach him how to hunt, or scare off the suitors from their daughter, not that she'd nee it. Any child of hers wouldn't need any help from anyone. It didn't matter that she didn't love Keith. He was her friend, and after all, it had been his idea to try to heal with each other's company. So she was trying to build something more from it. What was wrong with that?

"Regina…are you sure? After your last pregnancy, this won't be too much for you?" She narrowed her eyes at his lack in faith in her.

"Give me a baby, or I'll find someone who will," she snapped.

"Right now?" he asked in alarm.

"Right now."

XXX

Months of failures faded into years. Every month she'd pray for a baby, and every month, her cycle would be just as regular as always. She started getting discouraged when she hit thirty. By forty, she didn't want Keith to look at her, let alone touch her. She started blaming him, hating him. And she knew deep down, he felt the same way toward her.

"You're beautiful," Keith used to say every evening when she escaped to her bedroom, tired from the activities she had once enjoyed. Eventually he stopped saying anything when they finished, just rolled over and went to sleep. It left her feeling used and dirty, a far cry from the loving embraces she used to share with Daniel. It all just left her bitter.

It must have done the same to him, because as the years went by, he drank more and more. It made his temper flare more often and more violently. He never laid a hand on her, and she was too numb to feel anything from his cruel words, but it annoyed her all the same.

As Regina hit forty-five, they stopped trying altogether. The dream they had together was dead.

However, one day, Keith said something funny. "You haven't changed a day."

She looked at him thoughtfully. His youthful outlook was slowly leaving him, grey was spreading through his once brown hair, and wrinkles were forming. He wasn't the young guy who'd saved her and taught her how to survive so long ago. Regina didn't have a single grey hair, no wrinkles, nothing. She looked exactly the same as the day her life ended. She had noticed the lack of change, in the back of her mind, but she didn't realize the extent of it until now.

"I told you to eat better," she quipped back defensively.

"I told you to mind your own business." The years had not been kind. Prey in the forest was becoming scarce, they barely had enough money to survive.

Regina thought that was how she'd spend the rest of her days, barely living with a man she didn't love, didn't even like anymore, empty inside and out. As if that life wasn't bad enough, Keith started keeping secrets, leaving early and coming home late, hiding things from her. At first Regina didn't care.

"I wonder what would have happened if I had never found you," he asked one day. "I wonder if I would have found someone to fall in love with."

No matter how hard she tried, Regina couldn't forget that, nor could she shake the gut feeling that Keith's secrets were dangerous for her.

She remembered the times when she saw her face plastered on every tree and every shop in sight of it made her ill. Snow had posted it. Once her best friend, Snow took away everyone she loved, and now she was just rubbing salt in the wound even after all these years. It terrified her to think of being hunted, of having to leave this place and be on the run. Keith would tell her that everything would be alright, she would stay out of town for a few days and everyone would forget about it.

He didn't do that any more, now he sneered at the posters. "She looks much younger than you." He'd say. but she'd seen him lingering around those posters for a bit, deep in thought.

It made Regina suspicious.

So she did the only logical thing. When Keith fell asleep in a drunken stupor, she ransacked his bag. Dread knotted in her chest as she pulled out a flyer. It looked like it had been posted recently. She saw her own image staring back at her.

 _Regina Mills_

 _Murderer and Thief_

 _Wanted Dead or Alive_

Her shock and sadness quickly turned to anger. Why was Keith hiding the flyer? What did he have to gain from any of this? They had been in it together so far? Why would he turn on her now.

She got her answer at the bottom of the page.

 _Reward for Capture_

"I wish you hadn't seen that," said a cold voice. Regina saw Keith looking down at her, hunting knife in his hand. "I wish I could have done this while you were sleeping."

He went right for her, knife poised for her throat. She pulled away, grabbing one of her own weapons and holding it up, keeping him back.

"Why?" she asked. "I know things have changed, but I thought you were better than this."

He didn't answer, instead going after her again, not caring when Regina slashed at his arm. He used his greater weight to smash her into the wall.

"Because I'm tired of struggling, I'm tired of never being good enough." He insisted, his hands settling around her neck. "Not for you, not for Marian." His hands tightened. "At least now I'll be a hero. I'll be known for putting down a murderer." She struggled against him for a moment then Regina kneed him right away as hard as she could. He went down quickly, cradling his injured crotch.

"I'm not a murder." She spat. "And you know that." That was what hurt the most, the fact that she was innocent and would still kill her.

"That's not what everyone else thinks. I'll be a legend, be able to live in the lapse of luxuries until my dying days." He said, crawling back onto his knees. He was reaching for the fallen knife again.

"I regret ever meeting you." She declared. "Agreeing to stay here was the biggest mistake of my life." She stepped back, wanting to run, wanting to just get away from here.

"Mine too." Keith said, and then before she could run, he was up on his feet grabbing her hair. Regina reacted on instinct. She found her knife deep in Keith's chest.

He crumbled and Regina crumbled with him. Blood pooled from his chest, he gasped in shiver in utter pain. He gave her a final look.

"I guess you're a murder now." He chuckled.

She looked down at him, then her blood soaked hands. Regina didn't feel guilty, she felt free, like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

"I guess I am." She said. Regina didn't wait for him to die. She left him bleeding on the floor still breathing and gasping in pain and fled into the night.

* * *

 **I'm back! Not dead yet!**

 **Thanks to my _fantastic_ beta, CaptainSwanlurker, this finally got finished and proof read! **

**Regina's story is still going to have one more piece though, don't worry, not leaving everyone off like that!**

 **Stay tune for more soon, I'm very excited.**

 **~Luna**


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